


It Started With a Boom

by NuggetsOfRoss



Series: The Crew of Legends [1]
Category: FAHC - Fandom, Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: Alcohol Abuse, Hacker Gavin, Kidnapping, M/M, Multi, OT6, OT7, Ray is in the story for a few chapters, climb to the top, mentions of drug abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-29
Updated: 2018-04-22
Packaged: 2018-09-20 14:20:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 28
Words: 70,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9495500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NuggetsOfRoss/pseuds/NuggetsOfRoss
Summary: Gavin is not sure why but he is excited by them, entranced by them.The Fakes on tv.Little did he know he would feel like dying for them. And it would terrify him.He decides to say hi anyway.





	1. Fake News

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! This is my first time writing in Ao3 so if I make any mistakes don't be afraid to yell at me!!!

It starts when Gavin stares at the tv with a bored look, nothing good is ever on, especially not this late, but hes far too awake to sleep. So bad tv it is.

The news flashes with a giant Breaking News, showing a live feed of a bank...on fire. "Robbery, in Achievement City." The newscaster lady starts talking, "There are, reportedly, four armed criminals in the bank along with speculations of a..Sniper? On the rooftops." The lady looks downright annoyed as she quickly reads something behind the camera.

"The dangerous gang refers to themselves as the Fake AH Crew, their death count has risen over the past few hours and-" The lady is cut off and another reporter, fairly close to the bank, what a bloody idiot, starts to talk in a rushed voice. "The Fake AH Crew has holed themselves in the bank, the police are advancing and it doesn't look good for the criminals inside." The man says, his face pale as a police officers marches to them, loudly yelling at them to move back.

The screen lights up, fire consuming the surroundings, the video goes black. As quickly as can be expected the news station switches back to News Lady, who now looks pale as balls. First time seeing something like that live aye?

She talks quickly and Gavin looses interest, turning the tv on mute and pulling out his laptop. Fake AH Crew? Never heard of 'em. How could a gang that unheard of pull off something like that? They best be bloody interesting.

A few hours is all it takes for Gavin to know all there is about this new gang. About five members, two known to the police and the other three practically invisible. They had rough sketches but nothing worth keeping, they differed every time. Enough looking at police reports, it was time to find out the real stuff, the fun stuff.

First, local cameras, easy. There where broad perimeters that the police had deduced were the Fakes, so he watched them, looking for something interesting. He didn't just watch the cameras, keeping them up and watching them closely but he had other ideas.

Look for specific people. Mogar was the easiest, had a record since he was under 18 and was on the radar up until a few years ago. The pictures they had of him where extremely old, they probably didn't bother updating it. What a bunch of Plebs.

He was fairly handsome, with short hair just hinting at curls and freckles splashed on his face. A few cuts adorned his face along with a black eye. Seems the man has a thing for fights. No recent address or whereabouts, predictable. Scrubbed, all of it, these guys are serious.

Gavin briefly wondered if this so far harmless searching would result in some maybe not-so-harmless attacks on himself. Wasn't entirely impossible, he bargained, but what was life without some risks.

More about that later, now, we fuck around. The cameras had produced nothing interesting but he had come across a weird blind spot, the camera wasn't down, it was looping. He went back until the news had reported the robbery and watched the camera, it showed the same person looking out the window at every ten minute mark. So unless the guy is mental, somethings up here.

He had the street they escaped on, and most likely arrived on, it was a start. He followed the road and was glad that it didn't connect to some highway, he'd be screwed then. It lead to a private road going somewhat outside the city but not enough to cause suspicion.

Past that there where no cameras, the easy part was over. "Bollocks." He whispered to himself, hoping that this would have been much easier. He smirked, a little challenge was always fun, and plus, these guys where starting to grow on him. Well, grow on him meaning that he didn't immediately lose interest, much like he did with the other bigger gangs in the area.

Glancing up at the tv he comes to the conclusion that the Fakes escaped, and glancing back at the camera, he sees that they stopped the loop. Now he would gladly stay up all night, finding some way to get to them, hack into the cameras they no doubt had in their little safe house, but, he had a job to do.

The Fakes would have to come later.


	2. Nothing Is Here

Odd jobs is a fairly stupid name for whatever the hell Gavin does, or at least that's what he thinks, nothing was odd about these jobs, predictable and boring was more on the money. A few "I think my husbands cheating on me can you do this blah blah blah"  different ones asking for their records to be scrubbed, passwords to emails, access to files. Routine and boring.

The Fakes where unique, he had been watching the cameras closest to their street almost all hours of the day and was meticulously going through the records of the houses on the street. It was time consuming and not really exciting but when he found one owned by a specific, "Jeffery Smith" and apparently no one else on record, that's when he felt something was off. 

He's always been told he was observant, sometimes it helped him out, finding a bug on his computer or some guy tailing him, and other times it wasn't, as he had found out many times before.

But this time he was spot on. One man owning a giant penthouse, whose rent was enough to make Gavin raise his eyebrow, all by himself was weird on its own. Looking up the guys name did nothing, too generic, even using filters for just the city gave him a whole lot of nothing. 

He pulled up images of the penthouse, squinting at them in annoyance. They where blurry, far too blurry to make out any detail and he had a good guess that this was on purpose. That was about as much as he was going to get out of that, if they used a fake name then everything else on there was bound to be fake.

Gavin's stomach rumbles and he makes a subconscious thought to the fact that he hasn't eaten all day, oh well, at least he's making progress. He taps his fingers on his laptop, a tick he's had since forever, and thinks hard about his next step.

Fake name, yes, but can he still use it? Gavin pulls up the nearest stores and connects to the ATM's a process that shouldn't be as easy as it is. He scrolls through the credit card numbers and puts them through, looking for one specific name.

This takes hours, going to store after store, and making sure that none of this is able to trace back to him, not to mention the gammy credit cards. Finally, after five stores and way too many numbers he finds one "Jeffery Smith". 

Gavin nearly squawks in excitement when he find all of the purchases on the card, it may be a throwaway name, but the card, not so much. Scrolling through he finds two purchases that make him accidentally smack his knee on the table, he whines quietly to himself and rubs the knee. 

A phone bill and an internet bill. Top. Looking up the phone provider and getting into the actual customer information part of it is harder than the local cameras, which isn't saying much but come on.

Looking up the fake name and putting up filters to specifically that part of the city, he gets one with the correct area code. He's found one of their phone numbers. His palms get a bit sweaty and he realizes what he's found, one of Los Santos's top gang members phone number. His damn stomach feels as though some wank just kicked him in it.

He's kinda at a lost for what to do now, he didn't really think it this far out. Might as well text it yeah? He pulls out his most recent burner, although he trusts the precautions he's put on his actual phone, he doesn't want to take a chance with these new guys. 

He puts the number in and smirks when he starts to type out a message, smugly looking down on it and pressing send with only a moments hesitation. _'Saw you on the news, tell the rest of the crew I say hi'._  Just enough mystery to make things interesting.

He leaves the phone out and pulls up the internet provider, repeating the process of the phone company almost identically. He nearly ignores the phone when it goes off, too engrossed in searching through all Jeremy Smith's, it's harder to find specifics on this list.

He grabs it quickly, however, almost dropping it with how shaky his hands have gotten. Adrenaline is not something to geck about. _'Who are you and how did you get this number._ is all the text says, he pouts slightly, he expected something a little more fun.

 _'Don't guff about, I wanna have some fun, what's your name.'_ Gavin responds, he feels as though he could make an educated guess at this point. It's most likely the leader, a nameless and faceless man who the police know nothing about. 

He continues the search through names and finds a few promising ones when the phone goes off again. _'This isn't some joke, do you know who we are'_. Gavin groans, a low level intimidation attempt. Low level because he knows these guys can't do fuck all to him. 

 _'you're the Fake AH Crew, I know exactly who you guys are.'_ Throw some of that intimidation back at him, make him think. He checks through the promising names in the internet providers database and gets to the last one or two when the guy responds.

 _'What exactly do you know'_   Getting right to it I suppose. _'I know who the famous Mogar is, a Michael Jones, and should I mention that Jeffery Smith is not nearly as good a fake name as you think it is.'_ He snickers to himself and searches the last two names, finally finding the correct address and name pattern.

He copies down the information and brings up a new tab. After promptly ignoring the phone buzz as a new message pops up he pull up the wifi connections in the safe house. A handful of computers and security cameras, a few outside and one inside.

He connects to the inside camera and picks up the phone waiting for it to fully connect. ' _That's not hard to find, try a little harder to scare me'_ he grins, thats just what he plans to do. He pulls up the inside camera and takes in the room.

Fullscreen and he can see that there are three people in the room, someone that looks like the old photo of Michael is sitting on a couch while two people are sitting together, hovering over a phone. He debates whether or not to freak them out with the camera, telling Michael to stop slouching or something spunky like that, but he doesn't want them to freak and remove them.

Instead he does the next best thing, he zooms in as much as the camera can and waits for a clear shot of the man with the phones face. It takes a few minutes but he glances up, responding to something in the other room when Gavin finally gets a snapshot. Too bad the things don't have sound, that would be a wild ride.

He pulls up his special only-for-him database and plugs in the picture, it took him years to connect with the same face recognition the FBI and co. have, but it works like a dream, even including mugs from darker databases. 

It takes a bit and Gavin gets a little worried that the man with the phone is just that good at scrubbing his file before he gets a result. Geoff Ramsey. A man with about a million tattoos and a nearly terrifying glare at the camera. The picture isn't of great quality and seems to be even older than Michaels, but it's definitely him, it's a lot easier to identify a man by his tattoos. 

'You're name is Geoff Ramsey, and how many gumpy tattoos do you even have.' He sends it and his smirk widens about 100% when he sees the reaction the text gets. He stands up and yells something, two more people enter the room and Gavin quickly tries to get snapshots of them, running them through his database before he turns back to the feed.

Geoff starts talking to them all, gesturing to his phone and passing it around. All of them look rightfully anxious while Michael looks down right pissed. While Geoff is talking Gavin looks at the names his database uncovered, Jeremy Dooley and Ray Narvaez, Jr. The only one who doesn't get a hit is the big guy with blonde hair standing off to the side. 

Wasn't there one guy with a mask in there gang? That must be him, lucky bastard learned the rules before he was in the system. The Vagabond isn't nearly as freaky with his mask off, he could still munge me up though.

He glances back at the feed and sees Geoff texting again. 'What do you want' he actually pauses on this one. What does he want? He doesn't want money, he gets plenty of that from the odd jobs he picks up, he doesn't want guns or fame or anything like that. 'Just some fun Geoffy' He nods and decides that's about enough for today, he's spent a good half a day on this and has nearly everything he wants.

He shuts down his computer, wiping any evidence of his presence on everything, double and triple checking. By the time he gets another text he's finished shutting down. 'Who are you' the text says. He balances the phone on his palm thoughtfully before he answers, 'Nobody' he sends and smiles, he likes it, likes the feeling of knowing everything about the little crew, while they don't even know his name. 

It sends a jolt through him and he can't wait for tomorrow.

 


	3. Fire Under the Door

'Nobody' Geoff groans loudly and nearly throws the phone at the wall before Ryan can pluck it out of his hands, reading it and frowning. "Who do you think it is?" Ray asks, glancing up at the guys and back down at his DS. "I seriously have no clue." Geoff says, sinking into the couch next to Michael, who looks like he's about to punch someone, nothing new but no one gets too close to him.

"Who says gumpy?" Jeremy says, Michael shrugs and clenches his fists, a deep scowl on his face. "Okay but like, he hasn't done anything yet. He hasn't threatened to leak our shit or sell it, we might be okay for now." Ray says, looking up at everyone.

"How can we be okay? He knows who we are!" Michael yells, his face red and contorted. "Hey I didn't say it was a good thing." Ray says, unfazed by Michaels anger. "He's just saying we're okay right now, chill out Michael." Ryan says.

"I'm calling Jack." Geoff says, ignoring the bickering coming from Michael and Ryan. "Don't let him come to the penthouse." Jeremy warns, the phone his hand as he scrolls through the messages. 

"He's right, if he knows who we are, he probably knows where we are." Ray says, Geoff groans and brings his phone up to his ear. "Hey, yeah we got a problem." He starts off, walking into the other room. 

"Trace the messages?" Jeremy asks, "Nah, it's probably a burner, we won't get shit from it." Ray says, frowning to himself. "Who does that prick think he is?" Michael asks, getting up from the couch, Ryan rolling his eyes and Jeremy sighing. 

"I don't know, ask him." Ray says, a hint of a smirk on his lips as he swipes the phone from Jeremy and tosses it at Michael. He fumbles it for a minute but looks down at the screen and glares.

"Fuck no, I don't want to talk to him. Plus Geoff will kill me if I fuck this up." Michael says after a quick internal debate. "Yeah I fucking would." Geoff says, putting his phone back down as he enters the room.

He puts his hand out and Michael glares at him before he gives the phone back. "Jack's tracking the number I gave him right now." Geoff announces, as he runs a hand through his hair.

"Get to sleep we can deal with this bullshit in the morning." He says, waving off his crew. "You got it boss." Ray says, giving him a sarcastic salute and slinking to his room. Jeremy and Ryan exchange a glance as they look at Michael. 

"Michael, get your dumbass to bed before I have Ryan take you there and lock the damn door." Geoff says, giving the boy a glare, behind it his tired eyes are pleading with him. "Fine, whatever." Michael says, acting like a toddler as he stomps to his room.

Geoff can't really blame him, if he wasn't supposed to be the one with a level head he'd be doing the same. Who in their right mind would fuck with us, the Fakes, the fucking kings of Los Santos. 

That dumbass has another thing coming to him if he thinks this'll be easy.

Ryan and Jeremy leave Geoff to his own devices, chatting for a bit before they crash. It's hours later before Geoff gets off of the couch and into his own room. He glances at one of the rooms down the hallway, where faint lights shine under a doorway. Ray's still up. Better him than Michael I guess.

Geoff gets to his room and falls asleep the moment his head hits the pillow.

Michael listens closely and hears Geoff's door open and close, his snores echoing through the rather quiet penthouse before Michael gets up and opens his door. He walks down the hallway and faintly hopes that he doesn't wake up Ryan, the man barely gets any sleep as is. 

He manages to get through the house without waking up anyone and knocks on the door in front of him. "Get in here idiot." A soft, slightly scratchy voice says. He opens the door quickly and slips inside, closing it behind him silently. 

"Can't sleep?" Ray says, his DS out and above his face as he holds it up with his arms vertical. Michael silently wishes that he would drop the DS on his face, could break the tension, but Ray looks far to confident for that. "Funny coming from you." Michael jabs halfheartedly, he's not completely wrong, after all.

"You just gunna stand there or am I gunna have to jerk myself off?" Ray asks, looking at Michael, his DS ignored for now. Michael chuckles and climbs onto Ray's bed, laying down next to him, the smaller man curling into his side. "Looks like I am jerking myself off." Ray says after a few moments. 

"It would ruin the moment." Michael comments with a soft chuckle, running his fingers down Ray's side. "Ruin your moment maybe." He says, growing more relaxed under Michaels fingers. They stay like this for a moment, enjoying the silence in their hectic life, until Ray breaks it.

"Don't blow up because of this guy, like, I know that's kinda your thing but I think Geoff's tired of paying for it." Ray mutters. Michael snickers and shrugs, "This city could use more fire." He says, a dark glint in his eye, forcing Ray to hold back a shudder. Whether from fear or because it kinda turns him on Ray can't seem to tell.

"At least go fuck with some gang, this penthouse can't take much more of your shit." Ray teases. "Can do babe." Michael purrs, brushing his lips to Ray's, the two kissing sweetly, a chaotic undertone peeking through as Ray's hands grip Michaels shirt tightly.


	4. Coffee Date

Gavin wakes up in, what he can only call a mess. The result of about two days living off of nothing but energy drinks and junk food, while deciding that the floor is a trashcan. He should really buy a maid or something.

Eh, no one comes here anyway.

Picking up his phone he sees one new message that he actually wants to read, and a bunch from potential clients. Boring. Tapping on Geoff's message he grins, 'I would be careful if I were you.'

Mm, careful? Since when has that been a thing. 'Sounds boring.'  Not really one for being careful Geoffy. He has a reputation to keep.

Most people in this city have heard of him, they may not know who he is, but they will. 

Goldie or Golden Boy, he's heard both. Rumors about him go from being a master assassin, to actually being covered in gold. He's even heard some bloke go around telling people that he bled the damn stuff.

Gold. Such an easy thing to make into a calling card. It's expensive as heck but it attracts attention better than anything. And attention is the only reason he's here.

Without it, he's simply a really good hacker. You know, good on it's own but, needs some pizzazz. Gavin's a snake, in the best of terms, coaxing his prey near him and taking everything they have to their name. Its tricky, but it works.

He once convinced a man to let him inside his hotel room in five minutes flat. Flutter the eyebrows, pout the lips, stress the accent. He's a golden little twink. Not a name he would give himself, but rather it was given to him.

Promises of a good time and Gavin had his interest, lean on him, giggle, stumble a bit so he doesn't look like a threat. Although he stumbles on his own, that parts not hard. Let the man's hands wander, push down some heated scowls and once the guy shut the door.

Gavin was in.

Jabbed a needle in his neck, one that almost made the Golden Boy puke on the way there, and let him drop to the floor like the mingy piece of garbage he was. Found whatever he needed, some jewelry, cash, credit cards, and then cleaned the camera footage and he was golden.

Quite literally.

Not every job of his goes like that, usually he doesn't keep them alive for the end. Got a little name for himself, an assassin of sorts. Not as easy as scouring for data, but twice as fun. His phone goes off in his hands.

'Who are you'

Again with this question, really. 'Nobody' he replies, pulling up his laptop and grimacing when he notices the cans everywhere. This is really getting out of control...well he can always clean up later. 

Geoff never answers during the time it takes Gavin to set everything back up, the video feed is going while he gropes around for a semi full energy drink. The guys are up, at least Ray, Michael and that Vagabond gent are. They don't seem to be doing much, just watching the television.

Gavin rubs his eyes and smirks, running his fingers across the keyboard and bringing up a new tab. Time to test something out. Going back to Geoff's accounts he connects with them, pulling up some rather sketchy options and putting in a few of his own little tricks before a search bar pops up. 

Now, who to look up. What would Geoff put their names under, not their real names, to risky...Vagabond? Honestly it might work but that blokes already creepy enough, don't really wanna fuck with the guy just yet. 

Ah, Mogar. The boys already got a hot temper, wonder what will happen if I just...blow on it a bit. Gavin snickers to himself, typing the name in. Not so shockingly, given Geoff's previous history will internet safeguards, he easily finds a number containing the name Mogar. 

Transferring the number to his burner he glances at the feed before he types out a quick message. 'Hello boi, done any exploding recently'

It gets the exact reaction Gavin was hoping for. Michael jumps from the couch, throwing his phone at the wall, causing everyone in the room to glance at him. He starts yelling, Gavin can't hear what he's saying but he supposes it's got something to do with a few well placed gunshots. 

Geoff walks into the room, ignoring Michael for the most part as he picks up the phone and inspects it. He frowns and angrily tosses the phone to Jeremy who enters the room just in time. Gavin whines when Jeremy shakes his head and pockets the phone. They're making this harder on themselves, Gavin isn't one to be ignored.

He scowls at the feed and looks at his little search bar. What other names, what other names. Mogar was an alias, so, the others must be the same. A quick database search into police records show one BrownMan and one Monster Truck. 

They can't all get rid of their phones, one of them will have to respond. Why does Gavin care so much? Eh, he just wants to have a bit of fun before he inevitably gets bored of this new group. Although, he must admit, they've kept his attention far longer than most.

He searches Monster Truck first, getting a number on the first try and entering it. 'what about you lil J, hows your day been' being a bit cocky now. How many people will he have to go through, maybe he can make a little game out of it.

Jeremy eyes something out of frame and walks to get it, and after a few minutes all heads turn to him. He must be reading the text. Gavin giggles as the others start to look worried, even Mr. Face Paint over there looks bloody concerned.

Again no one texts him back and he groans, looking up BrownMan, frowning when he gets nothing. How about..Brown Man? A number pops up and he grins, already typing up a message.

'please lad I'm getting bored' He sends, not expecting much but he gets sort of surprised when Ray doesn't make a spectacle of his text, instead it seems as if he's..responding. Gavin's phone goes off and he makes a sort of squeal mixed with a weird bird noise, hurriedly picking it up.

'dude, wtf do you want' Finally, someone responds. 'idk you guys are interesting for the time' He sends, feeling more at ease with Ray's typing compared to Geoff's and shifting into a more casual way of typing. 

Ray doesn't react to the text, playing the same stoic attitude as the Vagabond next to him wears. 'you gotta name? we just keep calling you The Hacker' Ray sends, laid back question, but not really. If he gets a name he'll know who to look for. A little tit for tat Gavin supposes as he types his message to Ray.

'You can use G, lad' he sends, watching the live feed. Ray glances down at his phone and raises an eyebrow, he wasn't expecting an actual answer, Gavin assumes.

He opens his mouth and says something Gavin can't hear, but it makes the room freeze. He gave them a name, well sort of. Geoff looks as though he's berating Ray but the younger lad simply shrugs his shoulders and types on his phone again.

'Thanks G, now how about you stop using a burner like a pussy' Ray sends him. Gavin laughs, he actually laughs at this. This group keeps getting interesting.

'How about we do something a bit more fun' Gavin types as he shuts his laptop and slings on his backpack. Grabbing the nearest sweatshirt he pulls it on and grabs his golden sunglasses, a pair that costs more than most people.

He opens his door and slides the glasses on, and smirks to himself as he feels his phone go off in his pocket. Ignoring it for now he walks through his apartment building and out onto the street.

Glancing about he sees a nearly packed café, bloody convenient timing. He walks over and casually takes a picture of the front sign, walking inside he orders a coffee and a little something to eat as he reads his newest message.

'You have my attention' Good. He sends them a picture of the front sign and winks at the cashier while grabbing the stuff he ordered, causing the guy behind the cash register to blush.

'Find me' he puts as the caption.

Gavin settles down at a table next to the window, putting his hood up, hopefully less in a suspicious way and more in a, it's early as balls way.

It takes a few minutes before any of them show up, but he can tell the exact moment they do. They obviously weren't going for sneaky, as they pull up in a rather expensive looking car. Ray gets out along with Geoff, it seems they left Jeremy behind. Smart.

Looks like Michael's hanging out with the Vagabond, who's keeping who in check huh. Ray scans the crowd, much less obviously than Geoff does, who looks at everyone with a pissed off glare.

Gavin gets his phone out and turns it on in his pocket, typing a small message and slyly glancing down at it before hitting send. 'You drink much coffee lad'

Ray just barely glances over at Gavin but pays him little mind when his phone goes off. 'Nah, more of a soda guy myself' he sends, and the instant he presses send he watches the café, eyes flickering with every movement.

They both sit at a table and Gavin glances back out the window. 'Why's my boi Michael in the car' he sends. He finishes off his coffee while waiting for Ray to respond.

'Well, he wanted to blow the place up, you should be glad he's in the car' Quite blunt. Gavin chuckles softly at the image of Michael blowing up the café solely because he was in here. It's kinda heartwarming.

He finishes his coffee and glances at Ray and Geoff, who have still found nothing. 'Five minutes' he sends. Time to start the panic.

Geoff slams his hand down on the table and Gavin can faintly hear something about a little prick. Ray frowns and gets up from the table, opting to do the more direct sleuthing.

Gavin smirks and gets up also, switching from his casual posture to a more clumsy, rushed one. Ray doesn't look in front of him as he quickly scans the crowds.

Time to make a move.

Gavin runs into Ray hard enough for them both to fall to the ground, Gavin's nearly empty coffee falling to the ground. "Oh shit man, sorry about that." Ray says, glancing at him.

Gavin quickly glances around and grins to himself, "O-oh no worries-" he says as he attempts to get up, Ray following suit before Gavin is 'accidentally' pushed into Ray again by a bitchy waitress he 'didn't see'.

"Bloody hell this place is crazy." He says, helping Ray back up, "You said it man." Ray replies, looking slightly flustered. "Oh, uh sorry about the whole running into you thing." Ray says as he bends down and picks up Gavin's empty coffee.

Gavin smirks and looks over Ray's shoulder, Geoff is marching towards Ray. "Looks like your friend over there is awfully buggered." He says, Ray turning his head and whipping it back around when he feels someone brush against his jacket.

"See you soon love." Gavin says as he waves good bye and throws the coffee cup into the nearest trash. He's still going for casual, even though he's pretty much blew that.

He walks out the back of the coffee shop, nearest his apartment and looks behind him, he doesn't hear any commotion yet. He has a head start. Gavin jogs to his apartment as quickly as possible, feeling his phone go off.

Once inside he finally relaxes and pulls it out. 'What did you do to my phone' Ray's quick. 'You'll have to wait and find out Love' grinning all the way back to his apartment Gavin replays the events at the café.

He first bumped into Ray, the shock enough of a distraction to slip the phone out of Ray's pocket. He got up again, bringing attention to his face as he blurted out some rushed apology, he hid the phone in his jacket pocket and inserted a special USB. Gavin gets pushed back into Ray, buying more time for the USB to do it's thing.

It's nearly done when Ray starts talking to him, bending over to get Gavin's cup and allowing Gavin to check the USB's progress, one minute left. He strikes up some small talk, sees Geoff and grabs the opportunity. Pointing out Geoff and causing Ray to turn gives Gavin just enough time to slip the phone back into his pocket, minus the USB.

All within the span of five minutes.

Gavin fishes inside of his pocket and gets out the USB, everything he needs to continue having a bit of fun with the Fakes is right in his hand, and he's never been happier.

  
  



	5. Golden Opportunity

"Ok, in my defense the guys like, a really good pick pocket." Ray says, crossing his arms. "So are you!" Ryan points out, shaking his head. Ray purses his lips and looks down, after a few minutes he looks back up at the skeptical eyes of his crew and groans.

"Fine, fine! He was also really hot." Ray admits, "Fucking-Ray!" Michael shouts, "Hey, you didn't see him up close dude!" He says, poorly defending himself. "How about you Geoff?" Jeremy asks, glancing over at the older man who's fiddling with the new phone he just got.

"Huh?" He asks, looking up. "Was Hacker guy hot?" Ryan helpfully supplies, Geoff raising an eyebrow and squinting at them. "What are you dumbasses talking about?" Ray goes to answer him but a man with a Hawaiian shirt on and a hell of a beard walks into the room, holding a few mangled pieces of tech in his hands.

"Cameras are down." Jack reports, "Hey! Thanks Jack." Geoff says, smiling at him, successfully changing the topic. "Ok so, Ray your phone." Jack says, looking at him. 

"Oh yeah, I don't know what he did to it, but he got some yellow shit all over it." Ray says, tossing the phone to Jack. "I can't believe we didn't think about the cameras" Michael mumbles, his movements slightly jagged. He desperately needs to hit something. 

"Well they're gone now, and, we might have a picture of Hacker guy." Ryan says, getting his own phone out and pulling up a picture. It's from outside the café, looking in. Ray looks over his shoulder and studies the photo, swiping the phone from Ryan and zooming in.

"Found him." He says, zooming in on a slightly blurry photo of a guy in blindingly golden sunglasses and a large smirk..."That guys nose is fucking huge." Michael comments. "Hey let me see that." Jeremy says, Ray passing him the phone.

A look of recognition passes through his face, along with a strong sense of bewilderment. "Hey Ray, I'm not an expert but I think there's...Gold little flecks all over your phone." Jack says after inspecting the phone.

"No fucking way." Jeremy says quietly, his eyes wide as he process what Jack said. "What is it Jeremy." Geoff asks in a sort of slurred manner, the bottle in his hands probably the cause of that, he didn't take the whole being duped thing well. "I fucking-I know who this is!" He shouts, frantically grabbing his laptop.

"What? How the fuck do you know?" Michael asks, furrowing his eyebrows and trying to look at Lil J's laptop. "He's actually pretty popular." Jeremy mutters, "Lil J has a fan-crush." Ray says, chuckling to himself when Jeremy gets slightly flustered. 

"Shut the fuck up guys, who is he Jeremy?" Geoff asks, his eyes cold and serious. "Uh, he goes by Goldie or Golden Boy I guess." He says, turing his laptop screen to them, the page filled with police reports, suspected to be linked to Goldie with shitty police sketches. 

They all take a minute to read over the police reports, their faces falling farther and farther. "Holy fuck." Jack says first, Geoff nodding. "Explains the sunglasses." Ray says, his face blank as he reads through the reports. 

"I need to go, don't wait up for me." Michael says through a clenched jaw, along with stark white knuckles. The air tenses as he makes his way to the door, slamming it on his way out. "I leave you guys on your own for a week and this happens?" Jack says, teasing to lighten the mood. It doesn't really work, but it gets a snort from Ray. 

"Maybe he'll get bored with us?" Ryan suggests, recalling Ray's text from him. Jeremy nods and they all mull it over. "He could be useful." Geoff says after a brief silence. The rest of the crew glances at him oddly at the sudden change of heart.

"Jeremy, you're in his fan club, is he with any gangs right now?" Geoff asks, his eyes clear and calculating as he waits for Jeremy's answer. "Uh, no, not to my knowledge." He answers, still annoyed over the use of the word fan club.

"Good, I want a full fledge search for this guy, start with near the café." Geoff says, the statement pointed at Ray and Jeremy. "Um okay." Jeremy says, glancing over at Ray who shrugs and they both move from the couch, going to find equipment. 

"Geoff, we have to talk about this." Jack says lowly, "Fine, Ryan, make sure Michael doesn't get himself killed. Let's talk Jack." Geoff says, business mode on as the two mutter back and forth while walking into the 'planning' room.

Ryan looks around and sighs, grabbing his mask and putting it back on, "Why am I always the babysitter." He mutters, walking out of the penthouse, following Michael's path of destruction.


	6. Bloody Reasons

Cameras offline. Still. Bollocks, Jeremy must have been working while the others where buggering about.  Oh well, it's just a camera.

Gavin flips the USB in his hand, staring at it. Guess it's finally time to see what's in it. He wanted to wait, just in case they had somehow found him or something crazy like that, not to mention he was captivated by Michael-er...Mogar's theatrics the past few days. 

Gotta say that's a good chunk of the city he took down, gang territory but city nonetheless. It was impressive.

Now though, nothing's holding him back. He plugs the USB in, downloading it, his eyes flitting over to the connection he holds with the Crew's computers. Wait a minute. He gets closer to the screen.

He sees it, it's faint but it's definitely there. Someone else is on the Crew's network. He leaves the USB and nearly tips over his energy drink as his hands fly to the keyboard. Isolate the source, trace it back, they're in a vulnerable place right now, fucking lunatic, they're not even hiding.

He finds the address soon enough, he glares at it and goes to copy it down. What damn idiot does this kind of tosh work. His computer screen starts flashing, causing him squawk loudly, nearly throwing the computer from his lap. He deletes all traceable data he's made while searching for the asshole as the screen continues to flash, almost certainly making a high pitch noise, Gavin can't tell, he's far to concentrated.

"Bollocks!" He screams, slamming his computer shut and tossing it to the side of the couch, pulling at his hair. He can't do this right now, he's absolutely munged, he needs to find this guy quickly. He grabs a pen and a sticky note, causing a few empty wrappers to land on the floor.

He writes down what he remembers, glad that he took a good look at the origin of the address. Grabbing his backpack and his sunglasses, the movement less carefree this time as he rushes down the hallway. He sees himself in the metallic elevator doors and glares, fixing his hair and straightening out his clothes.

Look presentable, y'know, good enough so that when you shoot them at least they have a nice view before they go.

He stalks out of the elevator, keeping his hood up and his eyes down. He's noticed a few of the Fakes driving about here, wouldn't want found out, especially not right now. He's got some business to take care of.

The city is fairly empty, not many people out. Gavin silently wonders if it's because it's too late or too early, the sun isn't out and he didn't bother to check the time. Has he really been awake for this long? 

He gets in his car and starts it, nearly skidding out of the street as he speeds to his destination, grinning as he rolls down his window, leaning out slightly. He continues this, speeding down the nearly empty streets before he takes one turn far too quickly and drives over the curb nearly running into the store next to the street.

Gavin squawks and pulls himself back onto the road, putting both of his hands back on the wheel. "Bloody hell." He says, glancing back over his shoulder then in front of him. Explains why he doesn't drive much.

He takes to the streets at a relatively calmer speed and follows the directions that he inputted into his phone to outside of the city. It takes a long time before Gavin is able to see the house he's looking for. He raises an eyebrow at it and drives past it, opting to park his car a bit away. 

The house is shitty beyond compare, looks like the git went out and bought the cheapest meth house outside the city. Gavin grabs his bag out of the car and pulls out his pistol, plated in gold the gun sits heavy in his hands, it's almost comforting.

This shouldn't take long, the house is too small for more than two people, and besides, he's got surprise on his side. Stalking to the house he hides in the shadows of the fleeting dark, hunkering by a window and peeking in. 

The room is dark, bathed in the light of several computer screens, two full of code and another a with a map on screen. A man is sitting at the computers, staring intently at the one with a map. What is he doing...

Gavin slinks to the door and tries to open it quietly, the door opening with a slight creak, making him pause. The house doesn't make another sound, and so, he slips inside. 

The inside is bland and nearly empty, cracked walls, destroyed floors. Why this place? It's remote, sure, but this is ridiculous. A hired hand probably, no one would do this for themselves...How much is this guy being paid.

Gavin trips over the crumbling floor and stumbles into the wall, flinching as he hears the house echo his mistake. The quiet sound of typing in the other room ceases. Gavin holds his pistol tightly, raising it slightly, pulling it closer to his chest.

He smirks to himself as he hears footsteps edge towards him, he pushes his back as close to the wall as he can and steadies his breath. The man walks closer and stops right before the entrance of the hallway Gavin is in.

He has three ways to go, to the right; where a Gavin currently is, left; to an empty hallway, or right; to the front door. Either way he's gutted honestly, but it's fun to see what they do. Roll of the die and, a deciding moment. He chooses left.

Gavin raises his gun with a winning smile and clicks the safety off, forcing the man to whip around, the git's glasses nearly falling off. "Ello lad." Gavin says, taking on a relaxed posture.

"Who the hell are you?" The man asks, skimming his hand against his hip. "Keep lowering your hands and you'll never know." Gavin says, the man glares at him but makes no move for the gun at his side.

"You with the Fakes?" he asks, catching Gavin off guard, "Can't say I am, just happen to be that guy that got between you two." he answers back, the man visibly relaxes and attempts his own smug grin.

"Well then really we can work something out...let's talk." he says, although what Gavin wants isn't something this man can give, and so Gavin raises an eyebrow. "I'd love to know what you want from them. Something important, money, drugs?" he asks. 

"Confidential. Besides, it's better if you don't know." Gavin rolls his eyes, "Tell me and you might live." he says, pointing the gun at the man's head. Maybe he can scare the answer out of him, he's a hired man anyway, it can't be worth his life.

"If I say I'm dead anyways. Look, I'm just here to get their location and the guys with the guns do the rest, now you can either leave and this whole thing is forgotten or you can kill me and get fucked by the guys that hired me." The man says quite bluntly. 

"Who hired you?" Gavin asks, ignoring the mans veiled threats. "Why do you care, you're not on either side of this, you can walk out right now, nothing the Fakes have is valuable to you dumb shit." The man says, his face scrunching up as Gavin doesn't make a move to leave.

"I'm guessing by the map on your computer that you already have their location?" Gavin says, more of a rhetorical question but the mans silence gives it away. Gavin nods and pulls the trigger, the shot hitting the mans forehead dead center and lodging into the wall behind him. The body slumps to the floor.

"Can't have just anyone ruin my fun." Gavin says to himself, smiling and walking to the man's computer, he glances at it and shakes his head. Experienced? Probably. Good? Gunna have to go with no.

Everything is in plain site, literally it couldn't have been easier to find everything if he bloody labeled it. It takes a whole ten minutes to wipe all the computers. One more step, a little more, personal, than the last.

Stalking back to the body Gavin kneels next to it, ignoring the blood soaking into his jeans, he's got a million back in his apartment anyway. Digging in the mans pockets he pulls out a few useless things, a wallet, some cash, wrappers. Finally, he gets to what he wanted, the guy was fairly smart after all. 

He pulls out a tiny chip that can be inserted into a computer, most likely containing everything the guy learned about the crew. Time to destroy it. He could keep it but really, it's nothing he couldn't get on his own.

He breaks it in his hands and sprinkles the bits around. There we go, easy as that. He looks around the house one final time and leaves, heading back to his car with a triumphant grin. Without much thought as to what evidence he might have left behind, he's not in the system anyway made damn sure of that, he speeds away.

Back to the city. Maybe he'll actually take a nap or something, this whole Fakes thing is exhausting him.

The drive to the city seems longer than the drive out, and by the time he's back at his apartment, the suns high in the sky. The killing thing took longer than he thought.

The city is still not nearly as busy as it should be...What's got them worried? Can't still be the Mogar fiasco, can it?  He leaves his car and looks around, only one other guy is on the street, looks to be a tourist. 

The guy glances at Gavin and then quickly looks away, a startled look on his face. Gavin glances down at himself and flinches, he has blood staining his pants and his hands. Couldn't be more obvious

Thankfully, the guy doesn't say anything to him. Good enough luck, can't have some guy with a bright as ever flower shirt yelling about him covered in blood. Gavin walks to his building and passes the man, nearly getting to the door before he hears a click.

"Turn around, and if you would like to get through this without being shot, I suggest you get in the van." Gavin sighs and turns around, putting his hands up in a mock sign of surrender. 

He glances to the side and sees a van down the road, it's engine being turned on. He peeks at the guy holding the gun, his shirt almost blinding him, and decides to do something incredibly stupid.

But whatever, it wasn't like he was planning on anything later today anyway.

He's close enough to flower guy that he chances it. He swings his leg up and kicks the gun from the gents hand, losing balance he stumbles to the side, narrowly missing a misfire from Mr. Tourist as the gun goes flying.

Scrambling to his feet Gavin makes a few unpleasant squawking noises as he realizes he was nearly shot. Looking back at tourist man he grabs his own gun out of his side and aims it at him. "Good try, but it takes a bit more to kidnap me." Gavin says, chuckling to himself.

Arms grab Gavin from behind, tightly pinning his arms back. "Get your hands off me!" he yelps, yanking his elbow back and hitting supposedly the gut of the guy behind him. It's enough for Gavin to slip out of the guys grip.

He whirls around and glances at the two men, the one that was behind him has oddly green hair, and is..fairly short..Jeremy? "Lil J?" he mumbles, caught off guard. How did they find him so quickly? And who's the flower shirt guy? 

He doesn't get time to react as Jeremy slams him into the wall behind him, pinning his arms to the side and forcing the gun out of his hands. Gavin jerks his knee up and collides with Jeremy's private area, a cheap shot but Gavin isn't above cheap shots.

Jeremy groans and immediately loosens his grip, Gavin pushes him aside and attempts to grab his gun from the ground, but Flower Shirt Man is on him before he can reach it. "Be careful Jack, he's wily." Jeremy huffs from his slightly curled up position on the ground.

"I've got him-" Jack says, before Gavin manages to somehow flail enough to slap the glasses off of his face. "You sure got 'em." A voice says from the nearby parked van. That's that Ray guy, isn't it? How many more of these blokes are there?

Jack manages to get a better hold of Gavin and he stops struggling long enough for him and Jeremy to get Gavin into the back of the van. "This is bloody ridiculous!" Gavin says once Jack tosses him in the back.

"Hey." Ray says, turning his head to look back at Gavin. "Hey Ray, sorry about the phone thing. WHAT ARE YOU IDOTS DOING?" He says, more in reference to Jeremy and Jack. "Geoff wants to see you." Jacks says, offering nothing more than that.

Gavin groans from the back and leans against the inside of the van. So much for that nap.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the long wait between chapters, I just recently started Drivers Ed and so my weekends have been filled with extra classes. I hope this longer chapter makes up for it!


	7. Warm Welcome

"Finally being invited in, shame it had to be with a gun." Gavin says as Jeremy lets him out of the van and, as he mentioned before, a loaded gun is pointed in his direction as he is gestured ahead. The whole thing would be hilarious if Gavin wasn't close to a panic.

Jack opens the door to the pent house and Ray follows behind him, "Geoff, Goldie's here!" he announces. Gavin stops for a moment, how did they...The glasses? Shock courses through him at an alarming rate but he refuses to show it. This crew knows more about him than they're letting on, this is beyond just concerning.

Gavin walks-no saunters inside, acting like he owns the place he smirks at the tattooed man ahead of him. "Ramsey." Gavin says, nodding at him and looking around. "Get him in the chair." Geoff says, eyes cold and deadly.

Jeremy grabs Gavin and drags him into another room, all the while Gavin's shrill complaints echo through the house. Jeremy goes to turn him around but Gavin pulls out of his grip. "I can sit down by my-bloody-self." Gavin says, a sharp look at Jeremy, a warning, a challenge. Jeremy only offers a shrug, and steps out of Gavin's way.

Walking past him, Gavin eyes the chair they where talking about, oh balls. He isn't here for a nice chat, now is he? Keeping with his statement he sits in the cold metallic chair, hesitant about putting his arms down on the rests.

Geoff walks into the room and Jeremy shuts the door behind him, Ray staying in the living room. Gavin offers them a wide smirk, crossing his legs and appearing relaxed in the chair. "Do you bring all your guests here?" he asks, a cocky tone in his voice.

"Only the ones who piss us off." Geoff says, giving his own smirk to Gavin. A cold sweat breaks out on the back of his neck, did he really piss them off that much? He chuckles, hoping to hide the slight hitch in his breath.

Gavin's not a stranger to fear. For god's sake, he kills people for a living, he knows what fear looks like, tastes like. Nothing scares him more than the people who are like him, those who know what fear is, how to create it, control it. Geoff Ramsey seems to be a great example of exactly the kind of people that put him on edge.

Gavin hides it well, he knows he does, he can see the down turn of Geoff's smirk as he chuckles, and Jeremy tensing as Gavin's smirk never sways. He's putting them on edge just as much as they are, but they don't need to know that.

"Pleasure being here gents, really is, but what do you want? I have some things to take care of." He asks, glancing back down at his blood dried hands pointedly. "I want to know, why your big fucking nose, was poking around our computer files." Geoff says, getting closer to Gavin and clenching his fists. Computer files? He never touched the things...Too high risk.

"Never touched your files Geoffy." He says smugly, eyeing him. "Bullshit Goldie, your stuff was all over our computers, caused the entire thing to fuck up." Geoff says, his voice getting louder as he leers over Gavin.

"I have never touched your computer." Gavin says, annoyed as he sinks lower into his chair subconsciously, his voice never trembling. "That's a god damn lie and we both know it." Geoff says, setting Gavin off.

He doesn't like to be called a liar.

"I'm a bloody professional Geoff, if I wanted your damn files I would have taken them and your crew out on the night I found you!" Gavin shouts, stunning Geoff for a few seconds. "Keep shouting Golden fucker, wait 'till my boys get here, you'll wish you never fucked with us." Geoff remarks, his face a deep and angry red.

"Are you scared Geoffy, now that you know you and your crew could have been gone the moment I saw you?" Gavin taunts, Jeremy stiffens behind Geoff and glances at the older man, whose eyes are burning. "You don't scare me Ramsey." Gavin says lowly, sneering at him.

Faster than he can react, Gavin is punched across the face, hard. He makes a low sound, unable to hide the shock of getting hit. Pissed him off now. Thankfully, Gavin's glasses manage to stay on, the one good thing that's happened so far.

This is definitely going to bruise, "What'd I miss?" Gavin glances back up at the door, Ray standing by it with a few people behind him. Good thing the room is large. Gavin faintly wonders how often they use it.

"He's pissing Geoff off." Jeremy says, his voice catching Gavin's attention, what is that accent? He has a little, twang of something. God he could figure it out if Geoff could keep his hands to himself, absolute sausage knocked him right into a migraine.

"What did you find?" Geoff asks tightly, ignoring Jeremy. "The dude was dead, computers scrubbed, someone got there before us." A voice Gavin's never heard says. He moves his head to get a better look and meets face to face with, the one and only, Mogar.

"The fuck are you looking at?" Michael growls at him, "Okay, everyone, stop yelling and move." Jack says, pushing everyone into the room. "It's a right party in here." Gavin mutters, shifting slightly as everyone's eyes turn to him.

He's used to attention, but this is deadly.

"I'm not getting anything from him." Geoff says, glaring at Gavin. "Let R-Vagabond handle it, he won't last long." Jack says, looking over Gavin.

Geoff nods and walks past the others, Jeremy shares some whispers with Vagabond, who replies? It's nearly impossible to tell if he's talking.

Michael leaves with Jeremy, sending a final fiery glance at Gavin, who smirks and waves goodbye. Even if this Vagabond guy scares the ever living shit out of him, he can still be an annoying little fucker.

"Don't mind me." Ray says, leaning against the wall, pulling out his phone and glueing his eyes to it.

The Vagabond walks behind Gavin and pulls out some drawers, making an awful racket. What's back there? What has Gavin got himself into.

"It'd be easier if you told us where your shit is." Ray pipes up, glancing at Gavin.

"So you lot can put your gubby hands on it?! I don't have any of the damn files, I don't even know why you think I do!" Gavin replies, Ray shrugging.

The Vagabond walks back in front of Gavin, who makes a point not to look at the things in his hand. "What's your name." A deep voice asks, coming from the Vagabond himself.

His voice takes Gavin a minute to register, it sends knives of dread up his spine. Looks and sounds terrifying.

"Whatever you want it to be." He answers, sending him a carefree grin. Vagabond doesn't react, instead he grips the scary and very sharp looking knife in his hand tighter.

"Do you think this is a game." He asks, a rhetorical question of course but Gavin doesn't care. "Everything's a game, just gotta play it right."

First mistake.

Vagabond grabs Gavin's arms and forcefully cuffs his wrists to the chair. "Where is your base." He asks, getting down to business.

Gavin ignores the cold, cutting metal on his wrists and manages to chuckle. He doesn't answer, knowing that any reply he has will not bode well for him.

Vagabond poises the knife in his hand to Gavin's shoulder, a part of the body that won't kill him if stabbed but it will definitely be bloody painful.

"Where is your computer." He asks with a flat tone. "Up your arse." The knife is plunged deep into Gavin's shoulder, causing him to yell from pain and surprise, doing so before he can stop himself.

He leaves the knife in Gavin's shoulder, prolonging the pain enough for Gavin to bite his lip so hard it bleeds.

Yanking it back out, Vagabond asks the question again, Gavin not even paying attention at this point.

"I did not hack into your computer." Gavin says, accidentally interrupting Vagabond. "Then you shouldn't have a problem giving us your computer." He says, obviously not believing Gavin.

"Bugger off, you pricks! That thing costs more than your ugly mugs!" Gavin goes off, being shut up by another punch in the face.

God damn, the git's got a much stronger arm than Geoff. Gavin can feel blood running down his face, a broken nose, great. Don't even mention the giant crack in his glasses.

He groans, spitting out some blood onto the floor. "What were you doing this morning." Vagabond asks, taking a different approach.

"Cleaning up a mess." Gavin says, being as vague as possible. "Whats up with the blood?" Ray asks from his little corner, his phone away. He's been watching.

"The mess bled a little bit." Gavin replies, chuckling to himself. "Who was it?" Ray asks, stealing the questioning for himself, although it doesn't look like Vagabond cares.

"Dunno, some random git. This your version of good cop, bad cop or something?" Gavin asks, his face hurting more and more with every word he makes.

He can get through this, he's dealt with worse.

"Where was it?" Ray asks, pushing himself off the wall and sauntering closer. "Can't seem to remember, maybe you idiots knocked it out of me." Gavin lies, wondering why they care in the first place.

"Gunna need you to remember man, or else he's going to force you to remember." Ray says, gesturing to Vagabond, whose found a new toy to play with.

"It was a little ways outside the city, kinda drug house looking, why?" Gavin says, opting to not get his face punched in again.

"How far?" Vagabond asks behind him, the grip on his knife loosening. "Uh, about 30 minutes." Gavin says.

"What'd he do to you?" Ray asks, a look passing between him and the Vagabond. "Just bugged me."

"Go get Geoff." Vagabond says, Ray nodding and quickly walking out. "Something I said?" Gavin asks, looking at the Vagabond in confusion.

He doesn't receive an answer and together they wait in awkward silence until Ray comes back, toting Geoff along behind him.

"What?" Geoff asks, annoyed to even be in the same room as Gavin. "He killed the other guy." Vagabond says.

"Other guy?" Gavin ask, and is promptly ignored. He's extremely confused, and he's not sure if it's because of the searing pain in his still bleeding shoulder and face or because he's just slow.

"Explain." Geoff asks, looking directly at Gavin. "What do you mean! Bloody explain, explain what!?"

"Why did you kill the hired hacker?" Geoff asks. Oh, that's what they're on about.

"He munged up my computer when I was trying to find him." Gavin says, shrugging and then instantly regretting it as red hot pain shoots through him.

"How did you find him?" Geoff asks, a burning look in his eyes. Gavin doesn't answer, shouldn't answer, they don't need to know.

Geoff suddenly straightens up and slams a hand against the wall, causing Gavin to jump unwillingly.

"Answer the fucking question." Geoff growls, his explosive anger scaring Gavin more than the Vagabonds quiet one ever did.

"I was monitoring your computers connection." Gavin answers lowly, steeling himself. "I saw someone attempting to connect without any protection and I followed it and found him." Gavin says, purposefully leaving out details.

"Why'd your stuff show up on our computer?" Ray asks, "Like I said, he messed with my computer so the guy probably tried to frame me."

"What did he say to you?" Vagabond asks, Gavin huffs. "You're assuming I didn't just shoot him?" He says, getting pretty damn tired of answering their questions.

"What did he say?" Vagabond asks again, this time with intent behind it. "He told me he was looking for you guys, that you had something."

No one asks another question. What was it that they wanted to hear? Was that all? He should have let the damn guy live.

"Did he try to kill you?" Ray asks. "No."

"But you still killed him...Why, it wasn't your problem." Ray says, Gavin refusing to respond, mainly because he doesn't even know the answer himself.

Why did he shoot him. He could have walked away, no reason not to, except he didn't. Has he really gotten that attached to the Fakes.

No. They're just a source of entertainment, thats all, can't have anyone ruin that. They're just amusing to him. That's it.

"Well fuck." Geoff says, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm getting Jack, uncuff him, this whole things gone to shit." He continues, walking out.

"What just happened?" Gavin asks, watching Vagabond take his cuffs off. "We fucked you up for nothing, if anything Geoff should be sucking your dick right now." Ray says, ever the gent.

"So I kill the guy looking for you and you thank me by trying to torture me?" Gavin asks.

"Pretty much, well, thanks anyway."

 

 


	8. Window Pain

"Bring him over here." Jack says, gesturing to a chair in what seems to be a kitchen. Gavin sits in it, his shoulder sending waves of pain through him as he does so.

Shockingly, a stab wound doesn't heal itself.

"Shirt off." Jack says, propping up a few things like bandages and bottles onto the table.

"Haven't even bought me dinner first." Gavin teases under his breath, his breathing slightly hitching as he starts to take off his shirt. Thankfully, he was wearing a button up, a bloody, ruined button up.

"Damn Vagabond, he piss you off too?" Michael says, leaning on the door way, looking at Gavin and glancing over at the Vagabond. The man in question shrugs from his spot by the kitchen counter, standing next to Ray.

"Jeremy! Get in here and help me." Jack says, low grumbling from the other room makes its way into the kitchen and Jeremy takes a double take, a confused glance at Gavin. "Whatever, what'cha need Jack?" Jeremy asks.

"So, why's this fucker out here?" Michael asks, his temper having cooled since seeing the mess Vagabond made. "For the view, of course." Gavin says, hissing when Jack puts some medciney bullshit on his shoulder.

He's not going to lie, he's felt their eyes on him since he got here, it's not a rare occurrence. He knows how to play up his looks, it's what makes him so good at his job. People are so often blinded by a cheeky smile, that they don't notice the gun at his side. A deadly and stupid mistake, that so many people make.

Proving the point further he smirks at Michael, the boy glaring heatedly at him, almost snarling, but his cheeks flush. See? Ignore all the homicidal subtext and you can tell he's a little flustered.

"Hey boss man!" Jeremy says from his spot at the table, it seems like he's disinfecting something.

Geoff walks in and nods at Jeremy as he avoids looking at Gavin. "So..What's going on Geoff?" Jack prompts. Geoff sighs and rubs his face and mumbles lowly, too low to hear. "What?" Michael asks, looking annoyed.

"He killed the hired hand." Geoff finally says, his face twisted, pissed off at himself. Dunno why, the gents wanted to fuck Gavin up the moment he showed up.

The kitchen goes silent, Vagabond shifts on his feet, and if Gavin didn't know better he would say he looked kinda guilty.

"No way, I thought they where working to-" Michael starts, "Me, work with an amateur, idiotic." Gavin interrupts, scoffing at the very idea. "Regardless," Jack says, cutting off the brief argument, "He didn't hack into our files?".

"...Not as far as we know." Geoff admits, "I told you lot but no one would bloody listen to me." Gavin complains loudly, flinching when Jack starts to wrap his wound. Well at least now he won't bleed out. Always look at the positive side of things.

"Well, now what do we do with him?" Michael asks, clearly not wanting Gavin here. "I would love it if you shits would take me back to where I was." Gavin interjects, very blatantly being ignored. Geoff thinks for a minute and signals Jack to come to him, I guess they need to have a Boss only talk.

Jack gets up and they both leave, Gavin suddenly feeling four pairs of eyes on him. "I know the view is nice, but have some modesty." He teases, Michael scoffing while Ray snickers, Jeremy and Vagabond mean guy stay silent, although is that a faint blush on Jeremy's cheeks?

"I'll get you a shirt." Jeremy mumbles, getting up. "Thanks Love." Gavin says, leaning back in the chair he's in. "So, Micool, got any plans tonight?" Gavin says, trying to be a little prick, riling up Michael is by far is favorite.

"It's Michael not, _Micool_ dumb shit." Michael says, Gavin waving him off and sitting up, looking directly at him. "So is that a no?" Michael nearly growls in anger and clenches his fists, "I'm going to be busy kicking your ass."

"What about you Ray?" Gavin says, switching targets, honestly he's just messing around at this point, he's not even trying to gain something. "I'm busy, sorry." He replies, grinning as Michael glares at him. Ray's fun to play with, because well, he plays back.

"Y'know I'd ask the Vagabond gent over here but he just got done stabbing me so, it'd be a bit awkward." He says, huffing dramatically, smirking to himself. Got to act calm to seem calm, even though his heart is racing and he doesn't know what they're going to do with him, they just need to see his outer, cocky exterior.

Geoff walks back in just as Gavin's about to start another rousing game of, be a prick, unfortunately cutting it short. "Put him in the spare room and lock it, we can deal with him later." Geoff says, a blank look on his face, Michael goes to grab Gavin but he makes him stop, "Wait," Jeremy walks in with a spare shirt and Gavin takes it, pulling it over his head, nearly swimming in it, "see, not all of you are pricks."

Geoff raises an eyebrow and glances at Jack, who shakes his head, Michael grabs him and escorts him to his room, escorting in this case means roughly dragging down a hallway. Once inside Michael locks the door and Gavin's trapped inside to his own devices.

Except, he's really not, because these fools have forgotten one vital thing. He's smart, very smart, and he's a god damn expert when it comes to thinking on the spot. Especially, when the answer is staring him straight in the face.

Who in their right mind, puts someone they've kidnapped into a room with a window.

Ok, so maybe it's not as obvious a Gavin's putting it, because the windows a good three feet above him, and it seems to be just large enough to fit through. First problem, how to reach it. Easy, he drags the bed as quietly as he can to the window, solving the height issue.

Pushing on the window he sees that it's not one that can manually be opened, which means he's going to have to break it. More problems, noise, along with glass shards. He thinks on it, looking around the room and deciding that, his best move is to muffle the sound.

He picks up a few pillows and searches the room and finds a paper weight in a nearby shelf, what kind of people still have these bloody things? He has all that he needs, he covers the window with the pillows, hoping that it muffles enough of the sound and pulls his fist back, it has to be hard and precise.

He punches the window with the paper weight as hard as he can and feels his hand go through the window, hearing muffled glass breaking and feeling his hand get cut up. Well, he took care of the noise problem. The glass problem, eh.

He removes the pillow and clears away the glass as best as he can, getting blood on the window pane. Once he's done with that he pulls himself up and shimmies out, falling onto the ground and, unfortunately into more glass. Could be worse.

He slinks around the side, feeling the stab wound oh his shoulder inflaming from the fall. He remembers where the two cameras outside are and avoids them at all cost, opting to go to the garage. He walks to it and sees that it's locked by a passcode. Why is everything always locked.

He effectively opens the panel and munges up the wires enough so that the door to the garage opens, he saunters inside and looks through the vehicles, finding a motorcycle with keys still in it. He hasn't rode a motorcycle in a while, time to see what he remembers.

He gets on and starts it, putting on the helmet that was on the side of the bike, he zooms out of the garage much faster than he anticipated and nearly crashes into a tree, he corrects himself however, and goes back into the city.

They thought they knew who they where dealing with. Turns out, they don't have any god damn clue. Goldie's going to be a hell of a lot harder to catch unless they start learning a thing or two.

One of those things being that, you never, _ever_ , underestimate him.


	9. Listening Skillz

"Now what?" Jeremy asks as Michael comes back from locking Gavin in the spare room. "Great question. Geoff?" Jack says, turning to the man himself. "Why're you guys looking at me!" Geoff says, his voice going up a few octaves. "You are literally our boss." Ryan says.

"Shut up Ryan." Geoff responds, "Hey guys." Ray says, attempting to change topic. "You're the one who got us into this mess!" Ryan says, his voice getting louder.

"It was more of a team effort." Geoff replies, crossing his arms. "Guys." Ray tries again. "Team effort? You're the one who fucking said to 'beat the god damn gold out of him'!" Michael says, joining in, "Yo." Ray says, slumping in his seat and officially giving up when the others continue to argue. 

"Would you all shut the fuck up!" Jeremy says after a few more minutes of intense shouting, startling the crew as his voice manages to overpower everyone else's. Even Jeremy seems slightly surprised at his own yelling, but his expression stays hard as he glances at the group. 

"Is this our plan now? Just yelling at each other?" Jeremy says, blatantly staring at Geoff. Jack looks between the two, raising an eyebrow as Geoff doesn't answer right away. Geoff stares at Jeremy and shakes his head slowly, "No, no we have a plan." he starts off, straightening up.

"We always have a plan, no matter how much shit happens, we can handle it." Geoff says, nodding to himself, nearly smirking. Ryan relaxes a bit, Jack nodding along as well, "Wow, what an inspiring speech." Ray says sarcastically, his feet up on the table and his head back, looking about two seconds away from a nap.

"You got anything better to say?" Geoff asks, rolling his eyes at Ray. "Depends on your version of better, but, Goldie left about ten minutes ago." Ray says, stretching his arms out and smirking at Geoff as he slowly comprehends what Ray said.

Geoff runs down the hallway and nearly trips on the way there, the angry sounds of him trying to rip the door open being the only sound in the penthouse, "WHAT THE FUCK?!" and that breaks the flood gates.

"Why didn't you tell us when he got out!" Michael says, absolutely fuming as he glares down at Ray. "I tried to man, you idiots where all yelling." he says, "He can't be too far."Jack says, standing up. "Oh yeah, he took one of the motorcycles too, I saw it as he passed by the window." Ray says, shrugging.

"Not my motorcycle." Ryan says quietly, already mourning the loss. "Screw your motorcycle, the lunatic broke my window!" Geoff yells from the other room, "There's blood on the wall." Jeremy adds. 

"Did he reopen the stab wound?" Jack wonders out loud, looking slightly worried, "Ray, let's look outside." Ryan says, stirring Ray from his half sleep. "Sure Ryebread." He says, silently thanking him as it seems like Michael is giving him the death glare.

Together they walk outside and around the building, to where the broken window is. "Oh, that's gotta hurt." Ray says as he spies all of the glass on the ground, not to mention the splatters of blood. "How did you know he was out?" Ryan asks, kneeling down next to the glass and looking back up at the window.

"Heard the glass break, you guys must have been to loud to hear it." Ray says, continuing to the garage and chuckling at the lock, "He's efficient." Ryan says as he gets a look at what Ray was chuckling about. "He's smart." Ray says, looking inside and picking out the missing motorcycle. 

"Of course, the one time I leave the keys." Ryan mutters, shaking his head. "What do you think Geoff's gunna do?" Ray asks, hanging back at the garage, not looking forward to the rest of the crew's wrath. Well, Geoff's wrath..and Michael's..Maybe Jeremy's...Yeah, he's gunna stay out here for a bit more.

"He'll figure something out." Ryan says, shutting the garage and fiddling with the lock. Ray nods and leans against the wall, sighing. "So, what's your deal with him anyway?" Ryan asks, not looking up from the lock. "Who?"

Ryan glances at him and Ray can basically feel the glare, "Goldie? I don't know, he just, he's never rubbed me the wrong way y'know?" Ray says, glancing up at the sky as the sun slowly sets.

"He's literally hacked into our cameras and phones." Ryan says, "Well yeah, but he didn't do anything, Jeremy was talking about how good of a hacker this guy is, if he really wanted to do something, he would have done it, and he would have done it right." Ray says, eliciting no response from Ryan.

"Do you trust him?" Ryan asks, sounding skeptical. "God no." Ray says, chuckling, "Just thinking that maybe, Geoff should try a little harder getting on his good side." he says. "Hey, I can hear you assholes!" Geoff says from inside the house, a loud crashing noise following. "JEREMY!" Michael yells, "Sorry!" "All of you are fucking morons."

 "Ryan, Ray, catch." Jack says, bringing their attention to the front of the house, where Jack is standing with a..Phone? He tosses it to Ray, and as he catches it, he recognizes it as the GPS tracker they have set up on all of the vehicles. 

"You probably won't catch him, but maybe you'll get lucky." Jack says, shrugging. "You're a lifesaver Jack." Ray says, knowing Jack didn't do this so they could find the bike, more likely he just wanted them away from the..blast zone per se. "Yeah I know, come back in one piece." Jack says as he walks back inside.

"Let me see." Ryan says, Ray handing him the tracker and picking up a helmet. Safety first and all that jazz. "Alright, it's not moving so he probably parked it, let's go." he says, getting on one of his, many, bikes. "I'm not driving?" Ray asks, causing Ryan to chuckle, "Funny." 

Ray slides on and wraps his arms around Ryan's middle, admittedly squeezing his eyes shut when Ryan makes a fast, sharp turn out of the garage. It's not that he doesn't trust Ryan's driving skills, it's just that the guys a maniac, and it's even worse on a bike.

"Slow the fuck down!" Ray says, his head ducked in Ryan's shoulder. Ray feels Ryan's chest rumble and the man slows a bit down, Ray relaxing a little. "So best case scenario?" Ryan asks, his voice louder to fight the wind.

"Goldie gets on our side." Ray shouts back, "And worse?" Ray holds Ryan's middle a little tighter, "Let's just hope we keep him on our side." Ryan nods and swerves to avoid traffic, luckily missing any police officers out. 

"We're here." Ryan says after a few minutes, driving the bike into a semi empty lot, "No one's here." Ryan mutters to himself, parking the bike. "There it is." Ray says, pointing at the only bike in the lot, it looks fucked up. Ryan's not going to like that. 

"Are you serious? I just got this repainted." He mutters, true to Ray's prediction. "Eh, it's got character now." Ray says, snickering to himself. "That fucker, he left a note!" Ryan says, grabbing a piece of paper from the motorcycle.

"What's it say?" Ray asks, walking over. " **'Call me'** It even has those stupid hugs and kisses after it." Ryan says, shaking his head in disbelief. "You think now's a good time?" Ray asks, getting out his phone and glancing at the number left on the paper.

"I wouldn't." Ryan says, stuffing the paper in his pocket, "Ryan, you know I can't take you seriously in the mask." Ray jokes, his thumb hovering over the call button. "Geoff's actually going to kill you." Ryan says, trying again.

"Ha, I got you there, I'm already dead inside." He says, pressing the call button and bringing the phone to his ear, he picks up on the third ring. "Ello Ray." Gavin says, the smirk radiating from just those two words. 

"You up for some coffee?" Ray asks, Ryan faceplaming, which, by the way, is hilarious with the mask. "You're negotiation skills are abysmal."


	10. Royalty

Driving through the busy city with a bleeding stab wound on his shoulder and several dozens of small and not so small cuts littering almost every inch of Gavin's arms, is not how he was planning to spend his night. But here he is.  
  
He's dizzy, rightfully so, and has a passing thought to his already terrible driving skills suffering from the pain and blood loss, it'd be a shame if this is how he goes out. He shakes his head and instantaneously turns into the nearest lot, muttering lowly under his breath. In danger of fainting from blood loss, he hops off the bike, well he stumbles off the bike...okay so he falls over on the bike, leaving a big dent on the right side of it.  
  
"Serves them right." He mumbles after getting off of the ground as well as setting the bike back up. He gropes around in his pocket and pulls out a piece of paper, why does he have this? He turns it around and, lo and behold, the location of the hired hacker he killed earlier is on it. Awe, makes sense now.

He digs around the bike for a bit and manages to find a pen, his hands sticky with semi-dried blood he grips it and writes a note, he's made a decision. The crew may have been over their heads in the whole kidnapping plan, but they're good, and they're obviously interested in him.

If they weren't, Gavin wouldn't been have been kidnapped, he'd been shot the moment they saw him.

He stumbles the rest of the way to his apartment, hiding under the cover of darkness as it becomes more and more apparent that he is now bleeding heavily. Finally inside he goes to the elevator, leaning against the wall once the door shuts and it lurches to life. inspecting cuts on his arm he winces, a few larger cuts are oozing out blood, causing Gavin to gag and put pressure on the worst. Bollocks.  
  
Mumbling to himself faintly he staggers out of the elevator and to his door, unlocking it and slamming it shut. He immediately, dashes to the bathroom, falling to his knees and rummaging under his sink, pushing past the barrage of pills and other not-so-legal substances to get to some bandages. He doesn't bother disinfecting his cuts, he really, undoubtedly, should but he doesn't think he'll be able to stomach it, nearly on the verge of vomiting already.

He downs an assortment of different pills and sits down on the floor, assessing the damage. He pulls up his trouser legs and finds a few minor cuts, not bothering to mess with them, the worst of it on his arms, and his searing shoulder. He wraps the cuts, hissing in pain and grumbling to himself. You'd think after years of fixing himself up he'd be able to do it without much protest, but you'd be very wrong.

He's bloody exhausted once his phone goes off in the apartment, he stands up and stumbles to it, answering it with his usual cheeky tone, recognizing the number immediately. "Ello Ray." he says, "You up for some coffee?" Ray asks, only faintly surprising Gavin.

Ray doesn't negotiate, obviously he's a sniper, you can't get farther away from negotiations than that. So what gives? He keeps quiet a little longer and hears a deeper voice in the background, Jack no...Vagabond? "5' o clock at the café, look for me." He says before ending the call, tossing his phone to the couch and walking to his room.

Ray calling him? Wasn't expecting that, regardless he hopes Geoff's the one that joins him at the café, he hasn't had a proper conversation with him yet, and it should be interesting to say the least. 

He has work to do. He hasn't had this kind of 'meeting' in some time, he has to be prepared. 

Gavin spends the rest of the night going over things in his head, deciding what to say, what to do, what to look for, wear, appear, act. It's meticulous, as always, but it'll pay off. Or so he hopes. He doesn't start to worry until he sees the sun come up.

It's noon before he gets any sleep and 3 when he wakes back up. A nap of sorts, better than nothing. He rummages through his closet and spends, admittedly, a long time deciding what to wear. He decks himself out, full nines, a nice, expensive pressed long sleeve shirt with trousers to match, adorned with several pointless golden accessories with a pretty fortune attached to them, and finally, a new pair of his golden sunglasses as his others where so rudely cracked.

Grabbing his gun and attaching it to his side he looks at himself in the mirror, a blank face as he scans over himself, that's the Golden Boy they all want. Pretty and gold. Flashing a fake smirk at the mirror he nods to himself, he's ready, or at least the visual part of him is ready.

Honestly though, the visual part is all most of them need.

He rolls his shoulder, hissing slightly as he remembers why he shouldn't do that, taking another handful of pills for the returning pain. It's almost five as he leaves his apartment, nearly floating there. 

He walks inside the café, all of the eyes instantly on him. Casually walking to the counter he orders some insanely caffeinated drink, pleasantly surprised to see that the same man who took his order before is working. 

As before the man simply takes his order, offering no more conversation but he does stare at Gavin's attire with wide eyes. Wonder if the chap remembers him. He will now. 

Taking his drink he goes to the far back table, no one stares at him anymore, they know why he's here. Only two kinds of people go to the back table, the ones who want to deal in some less than savory things, and the morons who think they can catch them, and so far, Gavin hasn't seen any cops.

It doesn't take long for Geoff to show up, Gavin internally sighing in relief. Geoff doesn't bother ordering anything, and no one makes eye contact with him. "Ramsey." Gavin greets as Geoff takes the seat across from him.

"Nice get up." Geoff comments, looking directly in his eyes, waiting for some kind of reaction. "Got an image to keep." Gavin replies, taking a sip of his coffee, staring at him with an equally as suspicious look. 

"Enough bullshit, I wanna talk deals." Geoff says, cutting the small talk, interesting. "What kind of deals?" Gavin asks, listening intently. "Are you working with anyone?" Geoff says, veering off topic. Gavin frowns, masking his silence with another sip of coffee. 

Working with someone? What he does doesn't count as 'working' with someone, they pay him he does the shit, usually they don't even see each other. Forget gangs, those mingy things always biting at his heels one moment then begging the next, just like feral dogs. No, he hasn't worked with anyone in a long time.

"No." He answers finally, the corner of Geoff's lips turning slightly up. "You want to?" He asks, folding his arms. Gavin freezes, he was expecting this, well he thought about it, he didn't really think they'd want to hire him, all he's caused is trouble. 

"With you?" He asks, struggling to maintain his prickish attitude. "Yeah, of course you'd have to-" Geoff continues to talk but Gavin zones out. Work with the Fakes? God he couldn't even imagine, the fuckers hate him, or at least Michael definitely does. He shouldn't even be thinking about this, they bloody kidnapped him less than a day ago and he's considering working with them! He really is turning soft, letting this crew under his skin.

"I don't work with gangs." Gavin says tightly, interrupting Geoff's little speech thing. "We're not a gang," Geoff says smoothly, "we're a crew". Gavin snorts, rolling his eyes, "There's a difference between the two?" Gavin asks rhetorically, Geoff getting strangely more serious once he asks that.

"A gang's a bunch of criminals who rob banks and shit, I run a crew. We work hard to get what we want, we're the best of the best, hand picked by myself to rule this city. We're close and we get shit done. I'm guessing you've never worked with a crew?" Geoff says, very adamant about the difference between a gang and a crew.

Gavin's kind of blown away, he doesn't show it but Geoff's caught him off guard. "Nope, had a bunch of gang offers though, total pricks." He answers, sloshing his coffee around. Geoff smirks, looking at Gavin as if he's just said something incredible, Gavin shifts slightly, he's on edge.

"Not many guys work like you do." Geoff says, veering him off topic again. Gavin blinks, Geoff's obviously not talking about his hacking skills, he's met plenty of other guys in that field, none as good as him but still plenty. He's talking about the gold, the distraction. He's already figured it out, the act, the whole facade.

"I do my job well, better than most people in my field." Gavin says defensively, he's been taunted about it before, a male who works like him is rare, usually it's women. He's met plenty of them to know that, but he also knows that just because he's a guy, it doesn't deter most from falling for the pretty face trap. If anything it gives him more of an edge. "Believe me, I know. I've seen your work, it's good, best I've seen compared to other distracters." Geoff says, "That what people call us?" Gavin says, considering the name to be accurate. 

"Goldie, your valuable and you know it." Geoff says, Gavin smirking and nodding, waiting for Geoff to continue, "But it's gunna bite you in the ass if you continue to work alone, how many assassination attempts have you had this year, month, week?" he asks, raising an eyebrow.

Gavin stays silent, the question loud in his head, he clears his throat and shrugs, faking apathy. "3 this week, same person each time." He answers, chuckling to himself as he remembers the fumbling assassin, the absolute mess he left in his apartment hallway when Gavin finally took care of him took ages to clean out.

"Wouldn't happen in the crew, more reputation, less amateurs thinking they can get a quick buck, less headaches." Geoff says. He's making convincing points, he really is but, is it enough? Gavin's not sure, his uncertainty leaking to Geoff as he continues talking.

"I honestly didn't mean to fuck you up kid, the whole stabbing thing, it was a mistake." He says, probably the closest thing he'll get to an apology from the man. "It's top, comes with the job." Gavin says, finishing his coffee.

 "So?" Geoff asks, waiting for his reply. "I can back out at any time?" Gavin asks softly, looking down at the table and going through his options, "Yup, and we'll pay you well, better than any other shit gang here." Geoff says, his smirk growing.

Gavin leans back and nods to himself, "You gotta deal Geoff." He says, flashing a smirk at him, Geoff smiles back and chuckles, "Welcome to the team Goldie." He says, a weird sensation prickling under Gavin's skin as the sentence is said. 

Geoff gets up to leave and before he does, he leans next to Gavin's ear, causing Gavin to tense up, his hand sliding down to his gun. "Thanks for dressing up for me Goldie." He says, his voice changed from when he was talking to Gavin before, it's deeper, rougher, a shiver runs down Gavin's spine and he doesn't bother to react. His first defense to remain blank, a chuckle in his ear.

"See you soon." Geoff says once he straightens out and leaves, sending a wide smirk Gavin's way, he loosens up, undoubtedly a small blush on his cheeks and before he can respond Geoff is already gone.

Damn it he's never been caught off guard like that. Geoff leaned over him and whispered, Gavin knows that move to a T. He uses it, he's perfected it, he knows why it works, how to make it work. He's never had someone do it back to him.

Geoff Ramsey, the mysterious Kingpin. King of Los Santos, leader of the terrifying Fake AH Crew, millions of enemies and a bounty over his head enough to live on for years.

 Geoff Ramsey, the mysterious Kingpin. The man who made the Golden Boy blush. 


	11. Slightly Testy

"Seriously Michael." Jeremy says, rolling his eyes as Michael huffs, pouting like a little kid. "Why would Geoff hire him?!" Michael mutters to himself for the hundredth time today. "It's been a week!" Jeremy groans, throwing an arm over his eyes. "So! A week too fucking long if you ask me." He mutters.

The door swings open and Ryan pokes his head in, his mask left behind but smudges of paint still cover his features. "Still pouting I see..." He says, looking between Michael and Jeremy. "Why can't you just do the stupid job!" Michael says, standing up, a frown plastered on his face.

"Geoff's got me dealing with a few, unsavory people. Trade?" He says, a smirk on his face when Michael shivers, shooting him a disgusted glare, "Fuck no, last time I saw more guts and shit outside of the bodies than in them." He says, huffing again, slumping back into his seat. "Have fun with him-" Ryan says to Jeremy, shutting the door and shouting back, "-And don't let the new guy get shot!"

Michael mumbles to himself while Jeremy laughs sharply, "You heard him." Jeremy says, lugging himself off of Michael's bed. "The fuck's Ray?" Michael asks, also getting up. Honestly he'd rather do literally anything other than work with Goldie. Okay maybe not anything else, Ryan wasn't dragging him along again, he still remembers the smell of the damn place. God Ryan's a sick bastard. "The fuck's right here." A voice says from the other side of the door.

Jeremy chuckles and opens the door, nearly walking into Ray as the sniper carelessly stands in front of the door. "Sup Lil' J. Geoff wants you guys in the meeting room." Ray says, looking behind Jeremy to Michael, rolling his eyes once he sees the heated look on Michaels face.

"Goldie's here too." He adds once they walk past him, "Fuck." Michael mutters under his breath, and before he can go on with his, 'Poor me oh no I don't like the new guy, he's such a prick!' tirade again, Jeremy interrupts. "Do you ever shut up?" He asks, starting to become extremely annoyed by Michael's stupid fucking whining. "Tell me to fucking shut up again and you'll figure it out." Michael growls, clenching his fists. "Really Michael, do you really want to do this." Jeremy says, unconsciously, or perhaps not, puffing his chest. "Jesus christ, both of you shut up." Ray says in a bored voice, not intimidated in the least, walking between the two and opening the door to the meeting room.

The first thing Michael sees are those stupid, fucking, sunglasses. God he wants to just rip them off and smash his pretty little face in. Michael's never seen a face so unconventionally aggravating as Goldie's. Its gotta be some sort of achievement.

"Lads." Goldie greets, Ray nodding back at him and taking his usual meeting spot, leaning against the back wall. Jeremy doesn't say anything as he walks into the room and Michael scowls at him, the prick only smiling wider. If you could only see the metaphorical smoke billowing out of Michael's ears.

"Sit down Michael." Geoff says, his arms crossed and his 'Kingpin' mode activated. Michael rolls his eyes but listens to Geoff, sitting next to Jeremy, the argument between the two forgotten. Glancing at the maps on the board, overlapping with pictures of people and places connected with lines and bright red marker he shakes his head, he's not one for specifics. Go in, blow some shit up, shoot some guys, job done. It's a miracle he doesn't fuck up more jobs than he does. 

"I've already gone over the specifics with Goldie, Ray you stay up top, be look out, it doesn't matter if they see you just don't get shot." Ray gives him a thumbs up and chuckles softly at the last part.

"Michael, Jeremy, you're muscle, intimidation, you know what to do. Listen to Goldie and don't act without him telling you to, listening Michael?" Geoff says, the air tense before Michael answers, "Whatever, listen to Goldie, look badass, got it." He says lowly. Geoff's mouth quirks up a bit, his eyes betraying his serious look with amusement.

"Exactly. Now go, they're expecting you soon." Geoff says, meeting over. Goldie stands up, the simple movement enough to catch nearly every eye in the room. What about this guy is so damn captivating, is it the gold? His dumb fucking face? The giant nose? His britishness?

No, it's none of that. Goldie walks past them, smirking at Michael and, if Michael's right, winking at them from under his sunglasses. It's him, his attitude, his walk, his voice, his movements. Everything is so deliberate, so bent on catching everyone's attention. So far he's doing a fan-fucking-tastic job at it.

Michael's not sure if he wants to punch him in the face or stare at him. If he had the choice, he'd pick the first one though.

They make it to the garage without speaking to each other, and then Goldie pipes up, "Bloody fixed the lock since I was last here." He says, examining the new lock Jack just installed. "Yeah, just in case some prick decides to steal our shit." Michael says, Jeremy glances at him, a look of agreement in his eyes. Whose side are you on Jeremy? Agree with the lock but not with not trusting Goldie, what backwards fucking logic.

"Awe, I gave it back, don't be so uppity." Goldie says, shrugging his shoulder, the movement slightly halted as he winces. Snickering to himself, Michael remembers why his shoulder is just so sore, guess a stab to the shoulder will do that to you.

"Weapons in the back." Jeremy says, opening the trunk of the van, "Here we go." Ray says, rummaging through the back and pulling out his bright pink sniper, holding it out and nodding at it, it's beat up and bent, but it's Ray's. Grabbing what he needs and a little extra Michael hears Jeremy again, "Need anything?"

"Ah, I'm good Lil' J, got my own toys." The cocky British voice says, chuckling lightly to himself. "Does that thing even shoot?" Ray asks, and finally, after rolling his eyes, Michael takes a glance at what Ray's talking about. No way. Of course, of god damn course, he has a golden gun. Why not?

"Why else would I carry it, it's just a bit flashy." Goldie says, Ray snorting, "There's a difference between a pink gun and a solid gold one." He says, getting in the back seat of the car. Shrugging Goldie follows him and Michael sits up front, Jeremy driving.

"So, Geoff never told us who we're meeting." Jeremy says, glancing at Goldie using the rearview mirror. "Just some ballsy gang getting on his nerves, owes you guys drugs too apparently, didn't go into too much detail, such a gent." Goldie says, sarcasm seeping into his tone.

Apparently that's enough for Jeremy as he promptly goes back to driving in silence. Very, loud silence. Very...awkward silence. None of this is Michael's fault though, nope, none of it. He's the god damn epitome of friendly and inviting.

"Hey, here's good." Ray says, Jeremy breaking the van as Ray straps the rifle to his back and mock salutes to them, "Good luck, don't make me save your asses." He says, leaving the van and heading straight to the nearest building, heaving himself up it at a quick pace as they round the corner. "Checking in, getting into position now." Ray says, static crackling over their ears as the ear pieces come to life.

Parking the van in an empty lot Michael spies another van, windows tinted and the van, mysteriously missing plates. "Well, let's not bugger around, let's go lads. Stand back and enjoy." Goldie says, his smirk impossibly larger as he exits the van, Michael scrambling to follow him. Dumbass can't just stroll up there without any protection, god if he's a fucking amateur...

Goldie slows down once he nears the other people, heavily covered in tattoos and clad in leather, clearly they thought they looked intimidating. "You Ramsey?" one of them say, immediately being shut up by a man in the middle, who steps forward, offering a toothy grin and a biting glance.

"Who are you, we expected Ramsey, not some kid." He asks, his voice the same kind of rough you'd expect from a man determined to smoke his life away. Goldie doesn't react, "Well your information was wrong, and I assure you I'm not just some kid." He flashes his smile, full of teeth and barely kept malice.

"Whatever, we see how Ramsey takes our threats, if this is who he sends we don't need to talk." The leader says, moving to walk away, Goldie stiffening. This guy better cool his fucking attitude before Michael has to make him. Goldie chuckles lowly, almost darkly, glancing over at his 'guards' and back at the leader.

"You should be glad it's me out here, Ramsey wants your bloody gang gone, at least I'm willing to negotiate." Goldie says, his voice loose, his composure light.

The leader stiffens at that, the tone casual but it's contents creating an unseen commotion. "Then negotiate." The leader says, his arms crossed, his face tight. "You know our terms, all of the money you owe, plus interest." Goldie says.

The leaders expression remains the same, obviously hearing this before. Goldie pauses slightly, shifting in anticipation. "And all of the drugs you stole." He adds. "We don't having your fucking drugs!" One of the men shout, apparently that hit a nerve.

"Ah, you blokes sticking with that one?" Goldie responds, forcing himself to relax under their rage induced glares. "How many fucking times do I have to tell you-" Goldie cuts him off with a shake of the head and a soft chuckle.

"You sound very confident for a man not even high enough to know. You're just a negotiator." He says, tilting his head to the side and giving a sarcastic, nearly sympathetic look. "And what the fuck does that make you?!" The leader says, taking a few steps closer to Goldie, Jeremy and Michael both tensing.

"I could shoot him." Ray's voice crackles from the ear piece, Goldie chuckles under his breath but shakes his head. "It makes me smart." Goldie straightens his posture and squares his shoulders slightly, shifting from laid back to serious and nearly as threatening as a stocky British man can be.

"I know all about your gang, the Draugrs, a fancy name for a gammy bunch." He continues, "Thought you could get away with all of this underground business until the heat became too much and you lot resorted to petty theft, only you stole from the wrong man." His smirk never seems to falter, and his confidence nearly blinding.

"You idiots stole from the most powerful crew in the city, one who you already owe money to." Goldie says, chuckling dryly. The leader looks strained, unsure. "I could end this right now." He says, his eyes dark.

Goldie tries to suppress a chuckle, "With what, you're not armed." He says, gesturing to the leader, "And your little snipers up there are hardly covered." Michael looks up and scans the roofs above, Goldie's right, there's a few atop the roofs but there's little to no cover. Surprisingly, this gangs fucking stupid.

"You can have your money." The leader says stubbornly. "And?" Goldie asks, "And you're going to take it and walk away without me shooting your asses." Goldie tuts, "I'd watch what you say, you don't seem to understand who you're talking to." Flashing a smile and eyeing him darkly. What a smug bastard. What a smart bastard.

"You're just a pretty boy, you think I don't know the type." The leader growls, the people beside him laughing with renewed confidence. Goldie laughs and shakes his head, pulling out his gun and shooting the man standing next to the leader. He drops, blood pooling from his forehead, "Hilarious. Now, the things I asked for." Goldie says, lowering his gun.

A man in front of him goes to run at Goldie but the leader stops him, a grim, serious look on his face. Finally. He pauses, his face staying cold as he assesses. "We don't have the drugs, we sold them." He repeats, a shimmer of something in his eyes. "The money then." Goldie says, crossing his arms. The leader pauses but nods, motioning for another man behind him to get something.

Goldie casually brushes a hand to his ear, turning on the ear piece. "We got 'em Lads." Jeremy's lips twitch while Michael grins arrogantly. "Fucking finally, oh and don't worry about the guys up top." Ray says cooly and slightly ominously.

"All of the money we owe." The leader says, one of his men glaring heatedly at Goldie as he hands him a briefcase, a heavy one at that. "The drug money." Goldie says, handing the suitcase to Jeremy once he glances at the contents. The leader motions again and another man walks over to Goldie, carefully stepping over the dead body and blood puddle.

Goldie takes the last suitcase and as he finishes looking through it, nods. "Pleasure doing business with you." He says, receiving no reply as the leader simply stares coldly at them and turns back, the rest following him, leaving their dead member behind. Rough.

Michael, Jermey and Goldie wait until they reach the van to talk again. "Holy fuck." Jeremy says once he gets inside, "Nice of you to say." Goldie replies with a chuckle. "Okay that was fucking awesome, you just straight up shot that guy! And we got a fuck ton of cash." Michael says, sitting in the passenger seat and turning back to Goldie.

"I put on a nice show for you lads?" Goldie asks, leaning back in his seat and running a hand through his hair. Weirdly, after seeing Goldie's performance back there, Michael's not as into the whole 'punching his pretty face' thing as he was. That could change any minute though, who the fuck knows what Goldie will do next.

"Aye, you didn't die!" Ray says once the van stops around the block and picks him up. "You thought I'd die Ray?" Goldie asks, slightly offended. "Of course I did man, have you seen your gun." Ray answers immediately, "Yeah I did see it, while bloody shooting someone!" Goldie says, nearly squawking. How is he making that kind of noise? Fucking half bird or some shit?

"He's got you there Ray." Jeremy says, eyes focused on the road. "Yeah yeah, so what'd we get?" Ray asks, Goldie lugs the two suitcases and shows them to Ray. "This is way more than Geoff was asking." Ray comments, eyes wide.

"Yeah, apparently the dicks also owed us drugs so they paid up for those too." Michael says, eyeing the suitcases himself. "Oh, they didn't owe us bollocks." Goldie says without missing a beat, relaxing into the back seat.

"What?" Jeremy asks from the drivers seat, nearly swerving. "Oh sure, they owed us money but the drug thing was a load of crap." He admits, "So you pulled one over on them?" Ray asks.

"Well Geoff tried to trick me, he told me about the drugs and bull. I just figured out that the gang had no effin clue as to what I was going on about, so I had to spew some story about stealing from Geoff and it worked." Goldie says, chuckling in amusement, "He was fucking testing you." Michael says quietly.

"Sure seems like it, think I passed boys?" He asks, "Dude, I think you destroyed the test." Jeremy says, laughing and shaking his head.

"Wait, that means Geoff made us take a job that he thought you would fuck up on." Ray interrupts, a silence falling on the van.

"I'm gunna fucking kill him." Michael growls, "Oh, well here's your chance." Jeremy says as they reach the penthouse, Geoff outside leaning against the door, his eyes following the van. "You're fucking dead Geoff!" Michael yells out the window, Geoff laughing hard when he sees Michaels face. "Oh man, this is fucking hilarious." He manages to wheeze out once Michael makes his way to him, red faced and all.

"You're such a god damn dick!" Michael says. "Eh whatever, ignoring you, where's my money?" Geoff asks, going around Michael, "Right here Boss!" Ray says, tugging the cases out of the back and handing them to Geoff. "Oh my babies are back." He says, grabbing the cases tightly.

"We're fine too, no thanks to you!" Michael shouts, "I put you in capable hands." Geoff says, opening the cases and going through them. "You lied to him about the drugs!" Michael yells, seeming to be the only one upset about this. Even Jeremy doesn't seem to care much.

"Oh yeah that, it was his test thingy, seems like he did well." Geoff mutters, "Anyone see you?" He asks, turning to Goldie. "Nope, and no security cameras." He says, Geoff nodding and shutting the cases, clearing his throat.

"I want a run down once we get into the penthouse." Geoff says, heading back in. "What kind of fucking test was that?" Michael asks, no longer yelling but still pissed off. Still can't believe that Geoff would purposely lie about a job with a new guy running it. They all could have fucking died!

"An effective one." He says, laying out the cases of valuables and cash on the table, Jack looking over from the counter. "Job went well?" He asks, eyes trailing over the boys. "Better than well, look at all this fucking money." Geoff says, going through the cases.

"How'd you get them to pay you so much?" He asks, "Convinced them they stole it." Goldie says rather simply, "You should have seen them Geoff, they where eating out of his hand, they didn't have a fucking clue!" Jeremy says enthusiastically, eyes wide.

"Fan boy alert!" Ray yells from the other room, uninterested in the cash and more in the television. "Fan boy?" Goldie asks, confused. Jeremy goes slightly red, trying to stutter out a few words before he makes an escape to the main room.

"Jeremy! What does he mean?" Goldie shouts to him, trailing after. Ray's loud laughter competing with Goldie's confused squawks.

"You like him now?" Geoff asks after Goldie leaves the room, Both he and Jack looking at Michael with the same expecting looking. "Okay, fuck you guys, and...he's not as prickish as I first thought." Michael admits, "Oh no he is, he's just growing on you." Jack says, grinning at him.

"Well it doesn't fucking matter anyway, Geoff's already hired him." Michael mumbles lowly, Geoff laughs and pats Michael's shoulder. "Ha ha, you're totally fucking right man, sucks to be you."

 


	12. Speeding Leads To Trust Issues

"Hey idiot would you stop messing with Jeremy for five minutes!" Jack yells from the other room, undoubtedly hearing Jeremys loud, annoyed voice yelling at Gavin. "Awe he doesn't mean it!" Yells Goldie, snickering as Jeremy huffs and nearly slams his head down on the table.

"Aren't you supposed to be hacking or some shit." Michael jabs, glaring at him from across the room. "Feelin' left out Mikey?" Goldie says, pretending to pout.  Michael doesn't dignify it with a response and instead shows his thoughts by grabbing the nearest heavy item and lobbing it at Gavin's general direction.

Gavin falls off the table he was sitting on with a loud squawk and ducks from the falling shards of mug raining down on him. "What was that!" Jack shouts, his footsteps coming closer to the living room. "It was Michael!" Gavin says immediately, slightly flinching from Jack's accusing glare. "Are you fucking kidding me." He says, glancing at the destroyed mug and then Michael.

Michael simply shrugs and goes back to watching tv. "Maybe if he was doing his fucking job." He mumbles, purposefully loud enough to evoke a gasp from Gavin. "I could say the same to you!" He mocks, glaring at him through his tacky golden sunglasses.

"What the hell do you want me to do, go beat up a random guy? Newsflash, asshole, I can't really do my job right now!" Michael yells. Gavin stands up and feels his face go hot, "And what do you want me to do Michael? I can't just bloody snap my fingers and go 'Oh here Jack I got the whole god damn gaff covered'  it's more complicated than that, not that you would know-" Jack steps between them, the distance a lot shorter than Gavin thought, and because of that Gavin is instantly glad that Jack stepped in. As Michael looks ready to strangle him with his bare hands.

"You are going to stop being a hotheaded idiot and go pick up Vagabond." Jack says calmly, staring steadily at Michael, whose shoulders drop. "Fine." Jack turns to look at Gavin, "And Goldie is going to stop annoying Jeremy and go with you." He says. Jeremy breathes a sigh of relief while Michael looks right minged.

"But Jack-" He's cut off with a heated look, the mighty Mogar being silenced immediately. "Go, Vagabond's waiting, I want all three of you alive and back here in an hour." Jack lowly says, his tone leaving no room for arguments.

The two nod and leave the room, Michael shouldering past Gavin. They get in the car without looking at each other, both too stubborn to cave. Okay, one too stubborn to cave. One Mr. Michael Jones to be more specific. Gavin is very obviously already over the majority of the fight and is making side eyes at Michael. Quite frequently in fact, almost annoyingly frequent. Ok yeah it's annoying now.

"What is it Goldie?" Michael nearly barks out, his knuckles white on the steering wheel. "Nothing lad." Goldie says quickly turning his head to look out the window.

"If you see a crazy guy with a mask on tell me, he's supposed to be around here." Michael says, slowing down and driving past some rather shady looking allys. Gavin half heartedly looks out the window and jumps when Michael hits the brakes. "Need a ride skull guy?" Gavin looks over at Michaels window and sees the Vagabond lugging a heavy looking bag while waving at the car. "Yeah yeah the trunk, I gotcha Mr. Tall and Mysterious." Michael says, opening the trunk and tapping his finger on the wheel as they wait for the Vagabond to get in.

Finally, after stuffing whatever that bag is into the trunk the Vagabond gets in the backseat and stays silent. Gavin guesses it's because he's here, he's been around the crew long enough to notice that Vagabond isn't as stoic as he tries to make himself out to be. He can hear the guy's laugh from a room over for gods sake.

Again they start their silent, awkward car ride to the penthouse, it's becoming a trend, Gavin notices. There's other more interesting things that Gavin has noticed during his short time at the crew, but those should likely be kept to himself.

"Copper." Gavin calls out, Michael cursing lowly and letting off the gas. Of course the blokes speeding, why wouldn't he be. As if by fate the red and blue lights of the cop car go off behind them and Gavin swears and takes a glance at how fast Michael was going. "Oh you've got to be dicking with me." He says, the speed nearly 20 above the limit.

"Just keep going, we can out race him." Vagabond pipes up from the back. "Jack will literally murder me if he learns we were running from the police, especially because of my speeding." Michael says through gritted teeth, pulling off to the side.

"Vagabond the mask!" Gavin hisses, turning around in his seat. "He won't even notice." The Vagabond weakly argues. "What bloody cop isn't going to notice a guy in a skull mask!?" Gavin says trying his best to keep his voice down. "Really you wouldn't believe how high the chances are-" Michael cuts him off, "Vaga-Fuck it, Ryan, loose the god damn mask, Goldie's proved himself plenty and I am not gunna be taken in because of your stupid fucking mask."  He says lowly, his eyes glued to his mirror as he watches a cop get out of his vehicle.

"...Fine." Vagabond, er Ryan reaches up and quickly takes off his mask, the revelation being cut short for Gavin as he's forced to look ahead as the cop knocks on the windshield. "License and registration." The cops says blankly, Michael silently passing him a few papers. "Do you know how fast you where going back there?" The man says, the sentence sounding rehearsed and flat. Michaels shoulders are taut and he grits his jaw as he looks down, hiding his face with his hair.

"Uh, no, sorry sir guess I wasn't paying attention." Michael responds, sounding off. A thump echoes through the car, Ryan freezing in his seat. The sound so low that the cop must have missed it along with Michael as the two continue their conversation. Gavin glances at Ryan and for the first time sees Ryan's face, the worried look on it enough to snap himself out of the silence he was comfortable enough to hide in and forces him into action.

"Sorry sir, this idiot here was just showing off to me." Gavin cuts in, before the cop can mention the odd bumping sound in the trunk, before he can get a good look at Michael before this all goes very very badly. The officer gives him a once over and chuckles, "Showing off? In this car?" He says, gesturing to it.

Gavin chuckles as well and puts a sort of purr into his words, "Boys working with what he's got." The officer snorts and straightens his back, sighing and pulling out a pad of paper.

"Okay kids I still have to give you a ti-" a muffled scream sounds like it's coming from the trunk. "What was that?" The officer says, his voice tight.

"Uh, what was what?" Michael tries, gripping the steering wheel tightly. The cop stares down at him and his hand slides to his hip. "Fucking step on it!" Ryan yells, Michael not one to disappoint as the car lurches forward so hard that it flings Gavin back against his seat.

"What's in the trunk?!" Michael yells, looking back and seeing the cop running back to his own car. "Uh, the real question is who." Gavin opens the glove compartment and grabs a stray gun hidden inside, "Why is there some bloke in the trunk!" He asks, his voice up a few octaves.

"Hey, I don't know why we're all getting angry at me!" Ryan shouts over his own gun fire as he has now put his mask back on and is presently shooting out the window. "Because you put someone in the fucking trunk!" Michael yells, taking a sharp turn and glancing a street sign, leaving a nasty scratch on the car.

"It wouldn't have been a problem if someone wasn't speeding!" Argues Ryan, "Sorry, I didn't realize that you put someone in the trunk! You think that might have been important information?!" Gavin yanks his head back inside the car as a bullet gets a little too close to him, the action bundled with a few strangled yells as Michaels reckless driving is really beginning to show.

"You never asked!" Ryan shouts, shooting the tire out of the police car tailing them and sending it into a nearby building, the celebration cut off by the presence of two more police cars. "Why the fuck would I ask that!?" Michael yells, competing with the sounds of the shootout.

"I don't know, to be courteous!?" Ryan suggests, "I will stop this car and shoot you myself." Michael says, narrowly making a turn into a back ally. "Stop the car!" Gavin yells, Michael side eyes him, "I was joking you id-" Gavin shakes his head, "Just stop the car!" He yells.

Michael looks conflicted before he slams on the brakes, the force sending Gavin into the dashboard, he rubs his head before frantically pointing to an empty parking lot surrounded by high grass and crumbling buildings. "Park it behind the building." He says rushed.

"How do you know-" "Just go Michael!" Ryan says, Michael huffs and slams on the gas again, almost hitting the building. Thankfully he successfully makes it behind the building, a feat in itself. The car is squeezed between the back of the building and a wall, creating a nice cover but not one they're liable to get out of anytime soon. They wait in silence as sirens come closer to them, all of them holding their breath, unmoving. After what seems like forever the sirens become softer and softer, until the group has to struggle to hear them.

"So we're stuck right?" Ryan asks, Michael turns the car on and attempts to power through, and when that doesn't work he tries going backwards. "Yeah we're stuck." Gavin snickers quietly, relieved.

"Well, better call Jack." Michael mutters, "Tell 'em it was all Ryan's damn fault." Gavin says, trying to open his door and busting out of the car. "I don't think it was all my fault." Ryan says, busting his own car door open. "Well I beg to fucking differ." Michael says, pulling out his phone and leaving out Gavin's door.

"Yeah Jack, Goldie's still alive, yes we have Ryan. Why aren't we back yet? Funny story..." Michael says, walking a bit off. "What about the guy in the trunk, how are we getting him out?" Gavin asks Ryan, who shrugs and opens the trunk. "Ah, yep we won't have to worry about that one." "Is he dead?" "Oh very much so." Ryan closes the trunk and Gavin shakes his head, his stomach still unsettled from the car ride and he doesn't think he can take seeing whatever mangled piece of person is left in the trunk.

"Jack's coming, get your asses over here." Michael yells from the front of the building. "Where's the dude?" Michael asks once he sees the two empty handed. "He is very dead." Ryan says with a small chuckle, sending shivers down Gavin's spine as he walks closer to the side of the road. "Oh great." Michael comments sarcastically, crossing his arms as the three of them wait for Jack.

"Get in idiots!" Jack yells as soon as he can see the trio. "Here to save your asses once again." He comments as they all get in the car. "Ryan's fault." Michael says, glaring at the back of the seat. Jack pauses when Michael says Ryan, glancing at the back. "Sure." Ryan mutters, reaching up and taking off his mask for the first time since the shoot out, wiping his forehead and leaning his head on the seat.

"Geoff has the things you asked for down at the base." Jack says, the statement aimed at Gavin. "About damn time." He says, putting his hands behind his head and leaning back. "Get your elbow out of my face." Michael snaps, pushing Gavin's elbow away. "I wasn't even touching you boi." Gavin says, scooting closer to him, smirking as he sees Michaels expression change.

"This is touching you." He says lowly before very lightly touching the very red murderer next to him on the leg, purposely looking him in the eyes. "Get the fuck away from me." Michael says his lips drawn tight as he pushes Gavin back to his part of the car.

"Michael! That's hardly fair." Gavin protests, the other giving him a wide eyed stare. He doesn't respond and the car goes quiet. Michael squirms in his seat and huffs angrily under his breath once he stops moving.

"Give me back my matches Goldie." He says through gritted teeth. Ryan snorts in the passenger seat while Jack laughs under his breath. "Should of paid more attention." Gavin says pleased, tossing him back his matches, his hands shaking slightly. "Do it again and you won't have any hands to steal with." Michael threatens, falling on deaf ears as Gavin giggles, the sound slightly artificial.

"Hilarious Michael." He says, with a pit in his stomach, looking out the window. He sees his own smile and forces it to drop. Neutrality, he needs neutrality.

______________________

Taking another sip of the red bull next to him he glances at the time. Sighing he goes back to his screens, trifling through blueprints and security footage. Briefly he pulls out a pad and takes notes on the security routes of the guards, probably unneeded considering this group but always a possibility if they want a clean, easy heist.

But again, Gavin's talking about the Fakes.

He goes over the blueprint again, memorizing blindspots and mapping out a route. Keeping in mind where the money is, the valuables, the guards. Putting a brief reminder to take into consideration the silent alarms. Pulling up a map and roughing out an estimate of how much time they would have he writes that down and compares it to the route.

"You're still up."

Gavin jumps and nearly falls out his chair, turning around and accidentally unplugging his headphones in the process. "Ryan." He breathes, placing a hand on his chest. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you." Ryan says quietly, chuckling a bit.

"It's fine." He says. Gavin looks to the right of Ryan, avoiding eye contact as he waits for...Something to happen. He's seen Ryan up this late before but he's never bothered to strike up a conversation, which was both a relief and an annoyance.

"So, how's security going?" Ryan asks, looking at Gavin's monitors. "Well, by all means. Of course we'll have to scope the place out and get some intel from inside." Gavin says, Ryan nodding along.

"You're ahead of schedule." Ryan comments, Gavin humming in agreement and turning back around to his computer, hoping Ryan takes the hint.

"Want any coffee?" Ryan asks instead, Gavin tenses in bewilderment but nods, staying silent as he listens to Ryan leave the office he's in. Well he is certainly making things worse now.

It only takes a few minutes for Ryan to come back, he must have already had coffee ready. He hands one to Gavin who takes it without comment, his head fogged with not just exhaustion but also surprise.

Gavin faintly realizes that Ryan's not wearing his mask again. He can't tell if that's good. What he does know, almost reluctantly, is that Ryan looks absolutely amazing in the light of the computer screen, which seemed impossible up until now. And that's certainly not good.

"You're not going to lecture me about working late are you?" Gavin mutters, rolling his eyes while recalling the few conversation Jack had with him about the subject, which he didn't bother actually listening to. The man was probably the nicest one here but he was shit at getting Gavin to do anything he told him to do. Honestly they all were, even Geoff was starting to figure out that Gavin only listened to him if he wanted to.

"God no, I've had enough of those myself." He says, laughing softly. "Just figured I'd check in." He says, standing rather awkwardly before deciding to leave.

"Hey uh.." Gavin calls out before Ryan can leave, "Yes?" Gavin rubs the back of his neck, "Would you have told me your name without the whole police fiasco?" He asks, the question sounding soft in his ear, and he frowns at his own question.

He almost tells Ryan to just forget about it but stops when he starts to talk, "Sooner rather later." He says, sounding sure. It makes Gavin think.

"Your face?" He asks, staring down at his computer. This time Ryan stays quiet, thinking. "I'd like to think so." He answers calmly.

Gavin nods slowly, the action unconscious as he registers Ryan's answers. The silent Vagabond would have shown him his face, of his own free will. God he couldn't imagine. Could he possibly give them the same kind of trust? Let them know his name, to know him. He couldn't imagine.

Gavin swivels around, and stops once he realizes Ryan has left. He closes his mouth and turns back around, silently he stares at his screen again. This crew was getting to him, and he was letting them.

Sighing he glances at the mug at his side, gingerly picking it up and taking a sip. It's only been about a month, and yet...Shaking his head he rubs his temples, the whole thing coupled with nearly no sleep giving him a headache.

People shouldn't be this trusting, not in this field. He's learned from experience. But these people, they already trust him, to some degree, enough to shown them their faces, names. Why?

He takes another sip and leaves it at that. He can't go to far down that rabbit hole, unless he's willing to become a panicky mess, which he is not ready to deal with.

Back to the task at hand he picks up the blueprints, mind still far away. There's a vault here, likely will need a passcode, obviously. Unless they plan to blow the thing apart, Michael would get a kick out of that. Shaking his head at himself again, he focuses on the passcode.

They'll need to take a visit inside.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the super long wait but thankfully, now that school is out this will get updated much more frequently!!! Thank you so much to everyone leaving kudos and comments.


	13. Party Poisoning

"You done yet?" Geoff mumbles,  leaning next to Gavin. He raises his phone one last time and nods, pocketing it. "Ready as ever Geoffy." Gavin says. Geoff nods and the two walk out of the bank, Gavin stuffing his hands in his pocket and taking one last glance at the bank before he ducks into the car.

"Got everything?" Jack asks once Geoff and he get inside the car, "Yep, it's heist time bitches!" Geoff yells as the car leaves the curb. Thankfully, the windows are rolled up.

"Yes Geoff, let everyone know." Jack says, faintly grinning. Gavin bounces his leg in anticipation, wiping his palms on his jeans as he goes over the pictures on his phone again. He has everything he needs, now it's time to put it into action.

As soon as they get back to the house Geoff and Jack are already relaying what the plan is, repeating it to an almost mind numbing degree.

"Michael!" Jack shouts, the boy in question popping his head out, "You have everything ready?" Michael nods and grins nearly feral like, lifting up a backpack. Who needs pass codes when you can have explosions.

Or that's what Michael oh so helpfully supplied a little too eagerly.

Gavin rushes inside and picks up the earpiece at his desk, plopping in his seat and turning them on.

" Check in, before one of you blokes forget." He teases, refreshing his computer and pulling up his phone, quickly transferring files as the line up starts.

"Boss Man waiting for you dicks outside."

"Beardo here, with the only code name that's clever."

"Mr. Skullface is here...Thanks for the name guys."

"Rage Quit here and ready to kick some ass! Get in the fucking car and let's go!"

"Rayman checking in and checking out the view from up here. Also Mr. Skullface is the height of creativity."

"Rimmy is in the van and we are going! Ready to rob this bitch!"

Gavin nods to himself as each person checks in and switches to a street cam, glancing to make sure Ray's position is safe on top of the roof by the bank.

"Hey dick, check in!" Geoff says over the coms, causing Gavin to scoff. "I am not using the damn name you lot gave me." He mutters, faintly hearing laughter.

"British Prick is an accurate name I don't see the problem." Michael says as Gavin makes noises of disapproval. "Show you a British prick." He mumbles, only half paying attention as he scans through the bank, keeping track of the people inside.

"Dude, Goldie's gunna show Michael his dick." Ray pipes up, Gavin turns red but rolls with it, snickering when Michael mutters under his breath.

"Okay, we're here, masks on guns out." Geoff says, Gavin doesn't bother looking for them on the cameras, knowing for a fact there are none where Gavin told Jack to park. He just has to go by ear as he hears shuffling and a few metal clinks.

"Bank's clear, leg it."

They run out of the van and into the bank, Jack staying back as getaway. "Get on the fucking ground!" Yells an unmistakable Michael as the smallish crowd in the bank starts to panic. But really, they live in Los Santos you would think the idiots would get use to this by now.

"Teller on the far left." Gavin says, watching everything through the bank cameras. Jeremy aims his gun at the man at the booth and his arms immediately fly to the sky. "Don't fucking move or your blood will be all over that back wall." He shouts.

Nodding shakily the teller on the left stays still, Jermey still keeping an eye on them as Ryan moves ahead and into the back of the bank with Michael, Geoff and Jeremy doing crowd control.

Gavin leaves them alone for a bit and watches Michael and Ryan arrive at the safe, Michael rummaging inside his backpack until he pulls out a small, flat object.

He places it on the wall and presses a few buttons on it, while Ryan watches the entrance. It's not too long before Michael grabs Ryan's hand and runs the two behind the nearest wall.

"Clear!"

The room fills up with smoke suddenly and it dissipates nearly as fast, showing a massive hole in the door to the vault and damage to the surrounding wall. "It's open, go go." The two go inside to grab as much as they can and Gavin goes to monitor police radio.

"Hey British dick or whatever, I think someone's stalking the building." Jack says.

Gavin freezes. "A cop?" He asks quickly, cycling through the cameras around the building and trying to find the vehicle Jack mentioned. "No, not even undercover, I've never seen the car before." Jack adds.

Gavin searches through the footage again, picking out repeat cars. "Is he still there?" He asks, eyes flying across his screens. Jack stays silent for a minute then sighs, "No he's gone, guess I'm just paranoid." Gavin also sighs, relieved and goes back to the bank cameras just as something catches his attention.

"Police have been called, silent alarm, they'll be there in about 10 minutes. I can't get you out of prison from here so you blokes better hurry your idiot selves up."  Gavin informs them.

Jeremy curses under his breath and shoots the man on the far left booth in the head, "Asshole must of pressed it as soon as we got in!" He exclaims, turning his attention to the street now.

"That's a dickload of cash let's get the fuck out of here!" Geoff says as he checks on Ryan and Michael, eyes nearly popping out when he sees everything. "Five minutes." Gavin brings up.

"You want me to shoot them or..." Ray asks, "No! We're leaving now if these assholes would hurry up, just get ready to run." Geoff answers slightly out of breath as the four of them run to the van and pile in, the van immediately taking off and skidding down the streets just before the cops speed down the street.

"I'll catch a cab, good luck loosing the cops guys." Ray says, the lad stretching and putting his rifle away, looking around and waving quickly at the nearest camera before he jumps down the building.

"Run that guy over." Ryan says flatly, gunshots being used as background noise.

"I am trying to get us away from the cops, dumbass." Jack responds, annoyed, "For me Jack?" The line goes as silent as can be expected in a shootout slash car chase and then suddenly a loud crushing sound echoes through four lines.

"This is why you sit in the back during heists."

"Awe you do care."

"Bloody lunatics." Gavin mumbles, earning a chuckle. "You're one of us now Goldie, get use to it." Jeremy comments.

Gavin lets that sink in and catches himself smiling before he can stop, quickly putting that under control he goes back to his computer, tracking the cops.

Jack is bloody amazing at loosing the cops, as they start dropping off left and right, none of them fast enough or even smart enough to follow him. They easily loose the cops after a while and start a fairly leisurely drive back home. 

The first one to get to the house is Ray, who walks to Gavin's little 'office' and looks in. "They close?" He asks, Gavin nodding his eyes still glued to the screen.

Ray rolls his eyes and mutters something about eacaping before he ducks out.

"Honey, I'm home!" Geoff yells as soon as he gets inside, grabbing a helpless Ray who almost manages to leave the room before he is trapped into a drunken side hug.

Gavin walks in and raises an eyebrow at the two before Geoff notices. Ray groans and tries to peel him off as the others come in, Michael and Jeremy in similar states as Geoff and Jack seems to be on his way there as he grabs a bottle on his way in.

"Oh hey look, Goldie's here." Ray says, gesturing at Gavin as Geoff turns his head. "It's the British Prick!" He shouts, stumbling over to him and slinging an arm around his shoulders.

Gavin tenses but laughs at the staggering drunks, "Celebration time asshole!" Geoff slurs, lurching Gavin into the kitchen with him as he rummages through the cupboards, pulling out quite the collection of alcohol. Gavin can still hear the whoops and hollers coming from the other room, growing louder by the drink.

Geoff grabs a handful of bottles and leaves the kitchen, nearly face planting before recovering and giggling to himself. Gavin looks at the bottles and goes to get himself a drink, bloody deserves one. Grabbing a bottle he hears the clinking of glasses in the other room, cheers of victory enhanced by just how drunk they are.

Gavin grips the bottle a little too tight.

His vision flashes and for a moment it almost feels like he's there again. The room smells of liquor and beer, making him hazy as he stares down at the bottle in his hand. Just like what happned...Before.

Without another thought he walks to the guest room in a stupor, avoiding everyone's views. Locking the door he presses his back against it, hard.

His hands are shaking and he feels his grip start to loosen on the bottle. He hears the party outside and finds no filter between that and one that happened a life time ago. His vision blurs and he reaches up, meeting tears.

His breathing picks up and he slides down the door to hug his knees, the bottle hitting his leg. Thank God he brought the bottle. This is why he shouldn't get so bloody close.

Bitterly chuckling at the thought he opens the bottle and takes a long drink, it burns. His lungs ache and he feels sick, bile rising in his throat as he takes another drink. He should have known.

He might be halfway to tipsy but his visions still there and he still remembers so he takes another swig and nearly vomits he feels so sick. But he's felt worse and feels the weight in his hand, it's not empty yet.

He still remembers his name, he doesn't want to, but of course he can't just forget. He will never forget what he's done.

But he tries oh he tries as he is nearly done with the bottle and can't seem to see straight and can't tell whether or not he's been hyperventilating the entire time or if thats a new one.

He finishes the bottle in his hands and shakily crawls to his bed and gets the nearest bottle of anything strong he can find, which is a most of it. He's not sure if he should be thanking himself or not. He drinks anyway.

Their names meld together and suddenly he can't tell the difference between the past and what is now and he certainly thinks that can't be good but he is far too wasted to put together why. Flashes of familiar faces egg him on, bloody and broken, they appear exactly how he remembers them.

He drinks and drinks and drinks until he can't tell the difference between him and the alcohol, not sure that he ever will. Not sure he ever wants to.

And suddenly the bottle is empty and he is left there sitting with his back pressed against the door, legs to his chest and dried tears running down his cheeks and he can't put together why.

His mind is soup and he can't remember why he made it that way. He thinks it must have been bad, as he sluggishly looks around at the mess he's made.

Faintly he hears laughter in the next room and wonders why he's not in there.

After all he loves parties.

He laughs as he slowly falls unconscious. Still gripping the bottle in his hand.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is so incredibly short, the next one should be much longer and more action packed! Can't say it'll be less emotional though.


	14. Crashing

A pounding on the door startles Gavin awake, his head aches and his eyes sting. Everything is far too loud. "Goldie, get your ass up!" Geoff yells from the other side, spurring Gavin to stand up and hastily look around. He sways and grabs at the wall to steady himself.

"One bloody minute Geoff." Gavin manages, grabbing the bottles on the floor and frantically hiding them in one of his desk drawers. "No time!" Geoff says and bursts into the room, holding a laptop.

Gavin snatches his sunglasses off of the floor and haphazardly puts them on, facing Geoff. "We have to get this, tonight." He says, thrusting the computer into Gavins sight. He takes the laptop, head reeling, as he slowly manages to read the hazy words on the screen.

It's a diamond, an expensive one at that, a very expensive one..."Why tonight?" Gavin asks, his mind going to the pain pills in the bathroom. God he has a migraine.

"It's the only time possible, they're moving it out tomorrow, it's now or never Goldie. Can you do it?" Geoff asks, his smirk wide. Gavin grabs the laptop and reads it over, "Give me 10 minutes and I'll look it over." He decides, ushering Geoff out of his room.

He slams the door shut and takes a deep breath, heading to his bathroom he shuts that door and locks it, pulling open draws and sorting through pill bottles, mixing his own cocktail.

He strips and turns the shower on, stepping in and letting himself relax. He can feel the burning in his stomach and idly wonders about what he did last night. Of course doing that brings back flashes of memories he really does not want to deal with right now, and so he ignores it.

When he finally leaves the shower he feels better, still a tad sick but not like before. His glasses are foggy and he doesn't bother with looking good, grabbing a shirt and trousers, walking out with the computer, his hair still damp.

Hearing all of the commotion in the living room he figures that's where he's supposed to be. Peeking in he sees the gang lounging around, whooping at the television. "Morning."

Gavin jumps and looks beside him, where Ryan is leaning against the wall, eyes moving from the television to Gavin. "More like afternoon, innit?" He mumbles, glancing at the clock on the wall.

Ryan doesn't respond. Instead they both watch the television as last nights heist plays, catching glimpses of the crew's masks as they leave the bank, with guns high and bags full of money.

"You seem pretty haggard." Ryan comments, evoking a gasp from Gavin, a hand on his chest. "Ryan, me, haggard? Have you seen yourself." He teases, eyeing the bags under Ryan's eyes. Ryan's gaze lingers over Gavin, a weird look on his face.

"Didn't stay to party?" He asks, Gavin barely tenses, instead chuckling lightly. "Wasn't up for it." Gavin says, side eyeing Ryan.

"Yet, you're hungover." Ryan continues, a cold tingling runs down Gavin's spine. "Can bloody well drink on my own can't I?" Gavin quips, hoping to find an end to this conversation. Ryan's too observant for his own good.

"Goldie!" Geoff calls over, turning around on the couch. "Yeah yeah, hold on." Gavin says, going to an empty seat next to Jeremy. He relaxes, and let's out a smirk as he glances at Jeremy, who seems pretty hungover but happy. Opening the laptop he quickly looks for the schematics of the bank holding the diamond. This is not going to be easy.

"What time is the diamond being picked up."  Gavin asks, tapping his fingers on the edge of his laptop. "Midnight." Gavin huffs and studies the schematics. Running a hand through his hair he looks over at Geoff, not missing the way Jeremy was very much staring at him. Still has that fanboy crush.

"It's doable, it won't be easy, bloody hell. Giving me a few hours doesn't help either." Gavin says, Geoff's eyes lighting up. "Fuck yes, we're doing this! We're fucking doing this! We're gunna be rich Jack, holy shit!" Geoff shouts, jumping up, bringing the formally relaxing Jack up with him. Gavin looks back down at the computer as they start jumping around like children, causing Michael and Jeremy to follow.

Ray stays at the chair next to the couch, a fond smile on his face. Gavin can't help but feel a twinge in his chest as he looks back down at his laptop. It's nothing. He's just nervous. His chest always feels like an empty pit....When he's nervous.

Geoff stops after a while and looks back at him, "What do we need to do Goldie?"

___________________

Gavin's going over the plan for probably the third time, pointing and circling the important parts of the bank, which is admittedly most of it. And he's sure the crew's memorized it by now, but there can not be any mistakes in this.

The bank's guarded heavily, even more now that the diamond's there. Meaning way more fire power is needed inside, there will be two snipers on the job, and if the cops come before they can leave they're pinned. Also since someone thought it would be a great idea to do this last minute Gavin has to be in the van with Jack, as close to the bank as he can or the weak signal he's already stealing for the doors and alarms will snap and he and the rest of the crew will be dicked. Everyone will be in potential danger.

Gavin circles the vault, "Find the vaults operating system and-" he's interrupted, "And insert this usb looking thing I got it." Michael says, mumbling under his breath something about the lack of explosives. "The doors to the vault will need way more explosives than the last one, by the time you use the right amount the entire bank will go down with it." Ryan comments, glancing at Michael.

"Now that would be fun." Jeremy says, getting the same look of destruction as Michael. That's terrifying. But that bank would look really good exploding into flames, collapsing from the inside. Kinda like an implosion. Wonder what exactly that would look like.

Gavin blinks and pushes his sunglasses up, he's been spending too much time with the lads. "Then I'll open the doors and blackout the cameras, I'll try my best with the alarms but no guarantees." He ends, looking around the room.

"Okay shits you heard him, gear up, we leave soon." Geoff says, a gleaming look in his eyes. The lads burst out of the room, leaving Ryan, Jack and Geoff to chuckle and do their own combinations of looking like overwhelmed parents.

"Help me with the car Geoff?" Jack asks as the two leave together.

Cleaning the white board Gavin huffs, "You want something." He guesses, glancing at Ryan as he scans the Golden boy. "After the heist." Is all he says, slipping out the door and leaving Gavin alone in the planning room.

"Gunna have a bloody heart to heart?" Gavin asks aloud, shaking his head and grabbing the papers off the table, "The Vagabond." Gavin mumbles and freezes before running a hand down his face, "The Vagabond, god this is mental." He says quietly, thinking back to before. Rolling his stiff shoulder as he does.

The past is a very strange thing.

~

"I'm at the door."

Michael presses his back to the wall as he watches a guard around the corner turn to where he is.

"The code is 29155." Goldie says through the device in Michael's ear. "The guard." He mumbles, tensing as the guard starts to walk towards him, hand over something to his side.

"I don't have a shot." Ray says.

He can hear the officers footsteps as he gets closer. Methodical, precise, light. It's only a matter of time before he can hear them breath.

A soft pop echoes the empty street and the footsteps halt with a thud. "I got 'em." Jeremy says lowly.

Michael huffs quietly and pushes off the wall, entering the pin and going inside. "You dicks in yet?" He whispers. "Yeah, we're in." Geoff replies.

Heading in he replays the directions Goldie told him, following the path to the computer connected with the vault. It's silent.

"Anyone on your side?" Ryan asks, receiving a low, "No." and they continue.

It's dark. Dark enough that shadows make forms akin to humans in corners and on walls. It does very little to push away the anxiety Michael has while walking through the bank. He feels like he has very, very loud footsteps, and of course now he thinks he'd rather be out with Jeremy, sniping from above. He's never been good at stealth and now he can't help but prove that as he thinks back to when Ryan tried to teach him about stealth.

He draws a blank and thinks fuck it he's in here now what's the worse that can happen right? Besides he hasn't even seen anyone.

He bumps into a table, knocking over something very obviously made of glass. He swears and hears footsteps down the hallway. "Michael-" he cuts Goldie off with a huff and a very pointed shot in the general direction of the footsteps.

"I heard." He mumbles, not so carefully stepping in broken glass.

Maybe next time they'll just let him go in guns ablaze. Might be faster.

He hears the other person grunt and he unloads another clip into him. Well if they didn't know he was here before they do now.

Michael turns back to the way of the computer, very sure that the guard will not be getting back up. "That was pretty damn stealthy there Michael." Goldie comments between snickers.

"You fucking get in here and do this, I can't see shit." Michael hisses, smirking a bit. "Nah Jack would miss me too much." Goldie retorts, but a snort coming from Jack tells another story.

"Hey assholes we're literally robbing this place, shut the hell up." Geoff whispers, Ryan chuckling. Michael turns down the hall and sees the door he needs.

"I'm here but the door's locked... it needs an ID." Michael says, biting his lip as Goldie huffs on the other end. "Shit...Okay, you need to break the door, get in, and place the chip in the computer all in about...5 minutes."

"You've got to be fucking joking."

"That's about as long as I can jam the signal without the chip, any longer and it sends an alarm to the cops."

The line goes quiet and Ryan speaks up, "So uh, tell us when you start so when the cops start coming we're not surprised." The others lighten up a bit with a few comments themselves and Michael scoffs, "Hey asshole, time this."

He immediately shoots the door, of course he knows that's never going to work but really what better way to trust the structural integrity of a door. Next he slams his shoulder into it, once...twice...a third time.

With a bruised shoulder he finally lifts his leg and tries for a powerful kick. His foot goes right through the door.

Quickly he pulls it out and sticks his arm in, grasping for the lock and undoing it, he pushes inside and jams the chip inside the computer.

"Done." He pants, nursing his shoulder.

"Okay gents, the vault's are open...now!" Goldie announces, he hears scrambling on the other end and assumes it's the others running to the vaults.

"Good job Michael, what's your shoulder like?" Jack asks over the general commotion. "Eh." He answers, later he'll be told what a dumbass he was for ramming the door with his shoulder, but right now he'd rather concentrate on the fact that he just broke down a door like a badass.

"Goldie get down-"

Metal on metal, crashing and crunching rips through his ear piece.

And once again the line goes silent.

_____________

In the first five seconds of his eyes opening Gavin isn't sure if that's screams or alarms he hears so loudly but it makes him kinda wish he stayed with his eyes shut. He then realizes it's both. Then he realizes that Jack is slumped in the front seat and he looks limp, very limp, with blood dripping from his head.

Gavin reaches up and clamors for a wrist, concretes, and feels a pulse. He sighs in relief, letting Jack's wrist fall as he looks around him.

Then he hears the shouting again.

The front of the car is slammed in, presumably by the other car that is currently imbedded in the front. "Jack! Goldie! What the fuck is going on!" Geoff yells, and it takes a minute for Gavin to respond.

"Someone hit us." He mutters, fumbling for his gun as he goes to the back of the van, checking his computer. If his computer stops now everything in the bank will turn back on again, alarms, locks, cameras.

Footsteps outside make it deadly clear that he is not alone.

He freezes, "There's someone outside." He whispers. "I'm coming as fast as I can." Jermey says, sounding breathless.

Jeremy is two streets over, that's at least four buildings on each street because of the way the car is facing, and he's not even thinking about the heights and lengths of the buildings. He won't get here before whoever is outside does.

Gavin takes a deep breath and opens one of the back doors and fires blindly. He empties the clip faster than he can even see who's there or how many are there. All he knows is that he must have hit one because there is definitely blood on the ground.

He grabs the door and slams it shut again, jumping back when a bullet shoots through the door.

"Jeremy?"

"Hang on! There's some people trying to cut me off." He pants. Gavin's mind races and he sits up, wincing as another bullet shoots through the door. "Everyone needs to get out of the bank." He rushes, his accent thinker than before as he can't help but let a little fear seep in.

"We're almost done, we'll leave as soon as we can."

"No you don't-" another bullet shoots through the door, Gavin's been counting, and he can hear them getting closer to the door. He doesn't have time. "You don't understand, there's three, maybe four, out there. The vault doors only stay open if I stay in the van." He says quietly, tucking the computer to a corner of the van, nearly missing it when a shadow moves past a window.

Glass shatters and the doors open.

Gavin drops and frantically shoots at the nothing in front of him and quickly learns that he is running out of bullets fast.

"Goldie!"

He tosses the gun away and grabs his computer, sending in a finale command he shuts it and turns, sliding it under the seat just before someone grabs his leg.

He yelps and tries to kick at the arm but it yanks him outside, banging the back of his head on concrete.

He hears ringing and feels the back of his head start to get sticky. "Get out." He coughs to the others.

Gavin feels the person grab at him again and jerks the spare knife in his belt out and stabs it directly into the persons arm.

The guy towering above him has a hideous mask. It's all Gavin can think about as he crawls back and brings a hand to the back of his head, he feels the warm nauseatingly sticky coat of blood in his hair, and notices that his earpiece is no longer in his ear.

He frantically tries to get up and make a beeline back to the van but fails to notice the other two equally masked guys standing to the side.

He's grabbed again and this time slammed into the vans side. His head hits first and he sees dots and for the first time today, he feels light.

He doesn't even notice that he slumps to the ground. Doesn't notice the injured asshole and the last buff dude drag Jack out of the van. Doesn't notice the police sirens.

Gavin does remember seeing flashes of light. Then darkness. But that's how these things always go innit?


	15. Quiet

Fight or flight.

A common phrase thrown around to describe why some people flee and why some people fight. Those whose instincts tell them to run, run as far away as possible from whatever danger they might be facing. Those whose instincts tell them to fight back with all they have, to fight until they have nothing left until they are bleeding on the ground unable to move.

And then there's a third option, a third word to that overly common phrase.

Fight or flight...or freeze.

And Gavin was the freeze.

At the first instance of danger, he stops, he can not run he can not fight. He doesn't stop to just think or to plan. He's impulsive, reckless, rarely does he plan.

But he does freeze.

And right now he's frozen on some hard floor and it's cold and his face is caked in something. His head feels like an electric spark and every time he breathes it shoots through him a blinding pain. Does he really want to get up? Is this some drug induced hangover? Why is he on the floor? He can't move. He doesn't want to move.

"Goldie."

His eyes shoot open and he immediately regrets it as his head burns. He squints and flinches back as a hand touches his forehead.

"Jack?" He asks, squinting at the bearded man as he hovers over him. His vision clears and he glances around and everything comes rushing back. They're in a cell, not a nice, white tiled steel bar kind of cell either. It's some dark perhaps moldy definitely blood stained room with thick bars and a heavy looking door.

"Bloody hell." Gavin hisses out as he sits up, "What happened?" Jack asks, sounding just about confused as you would expect from a guy that was knocked unconscious some hours ago.

"We've been nabbed." Gavin says, looking at Jack and noticing a streak of dried blood from his hairline down his cheek.

"No shit." Jack says, looking distracted. He's staring at Gavin who subconsciously brings a hand to his face and tenses when he can't feel the familiar lenses. His hand falls to his side and he looks away from Jack, his heart beating hard in his chest.

They fall quiet and Jack clears his throat, looking away from Gavin, "Someone crashed into the van..." He prompts. "You passed out, they started coming out of the car. I couldn't hold them off by myself and so we're here now." Gavin says flatly, lips twitching. "The car from yesterday." Jack mumbles, wincing and rubbing the back of his head.

"The car?" Gavin asks, glancing at him. "The car, I knew something was up with it. They were scouting." Jack says, trying to get to his feet. Gavin goes to stop him, but hangs back, watching him out of the corner of his eye. "They probably thought I was alone." He says aloud.

"Suppose I startled them when they opened the van doors and I started firing." Gavin mutters, getting a strained chuckle from Jack. It makes sense, one cell, no restraints, no guard. Unless this lot is extremely cocky, they seem very unprepared. They're not prepared for a fight, they're not prepared for trouble.

Jack and Gavin whip their heads to the bars in the room as a door opens. "Hello boys." A rather younger looking lady says, her face pristine but her posture throws away the notion of any kind of softness. Her hands are behind her back, her hands squeezed into fists and her eyes hard and cold.  She reminds Gavin of a crow.

"What do you want?" Jack says, his tone hard and rehearsed, "Ah, we'll get to that, but first," She says, coming into the cell followed by a rather mean looking guy. "The stowaway." She says, motioning to Gavin.

"Wait a bloody minute!" Gavin says as the guy starts to walk over to him, not pausing in the slightest. He tries to get up on his own and sways, backing away from the man.

Jack takes a pointed step between Gavin and the man. The crow woman motions behind her and another man comes through the door.

Like a flock they come in and Gavin can feel himself being led forward, his hand held painfully behind his back. "Get your damn hands off me." He hisses, trying to pull his hands out of their grips but it does little good.

He's dragged out and his ears are ringing with adrenaline? Fear? Anticipation? They're ringing and ringing and that crow is sitting in front of him with a smirk.

He blinks.

"Hello."

The ringing stops and he looks at her, eyes beady, sharp, a smile with no glee. She's happy in a sick way. She's waiting for a response.

"What do you want." He's blunt, like a bat he's hoping he hits something. "Straight to it." She says.

She sighs and leans forward, her hands folded. "What I want is information." She says.

"You think I know something?" Gavin asks. The woman chuckles and pulls something out of her pocket.

"I know you know them." She says, laying out pictures of the rest of the crew. Gavin feels his lips twitch and looks down at the pictures with a blank face, gazing at them uninterestedly.

"No idea." He says, looking back up and giving her a smirk himself.

"You're sticking with that, hm?" She says raising an eyebrow and just looking at him. He stares back.

Silence.

She stands up suddenly. "I think you are failing to see the situation you are in." She starts, making her way closer to him.

"These people have something of ours that we want back. And if you help us well gee I wouldn't be able to stop myself from taking you on as a very special and very crucial part of this whole operation."

She says, smiling at him and placing a hand on his shoulder. Tensing Gavin fights the urge to pull away.

"But if you don't..." she says trailing off and softly picking up one of his hands, "I'll destroy every single one of your fingers, one by one, until your hand is so mangled you won't even be able to think about working on a computer."

Gavin jerks his hand away from her, he strains himself into a neutral expression.

"You wouldn't do that."

"And why's that."

This time it's his turn to smirk, "You want me, regardless of wether I talk or not."

She squints, searching. She sits like a perching bird and snaps her mouth open like a beak as she speaks again.

"Why would we-" he cuts her off and chuckles, leaning back. "As if you're dumb enough to not know who I am."

She searches again. She glares.

"The Golden Boy?" He says, "Goldie? Master hacker? Assassin for hire? Can literally steal the clothes of your back?"

Her frown deepens, but then she smiles.

"It seems like you have everything figured out." She says, walking with her back to him to the door, the guards standing there separating.

"I like to think so, Love." Gavin says, smiling cockily at her.

She tuts and turns to the nearest guard, "Help him figure out how we work around here." She says, laughing as Gavin sits up in his seat and the guards walk towards him.

The way things work is painful.

_______________

He's thrown back into the cell and Gavin can only imagine what he looks like. He groans and hears someone say something. While opening his eyes he feels a sense of deja vu.

Jack is kneeling over him again with what looks like a black eye, dried blood still sticks to his forehead. Gavin can't make out what he's saying but he can see the worry in his eyes.

Jack helps him sit up.

They stay silent while Jack meticulously looks over his wounds, something Gavin would vehemently be opposed to if he wasn't so out of it.

"What'd they ask about?" Jack asks while the two lean against the cool cement wall.

"The Crew, mostly." He mumbles, the side of his face aches and he can feel blood leak into his moth from a split lip.

"You didn't say anything." Jack says, not as a question but a statement. "How'd you know?" He asks, glancing at Jack.

He doesn't look back and keeps staring ahead, "Just a hunch." He says.

Quiet again.

"They're coming and they're going to be angry as fuck." Jack says flatly, and Gavin chuckles as he thinks about it.

"They can't leave their Jack behind." He jokes lowly, wheezing slightly as his ribs burn.

"You too dumbass, you're part of the Crew now." Jack says.

"Not like you are."

Gavin tenses and he tries to read Jack's face, but it's utterly blank, it's...unsettlingly on him.

"How long have you known?" Jack asks calmly.

"Soon as I stayed over, it's pretty damn obvious."

"You don't care?"

"Not my business."

He thinks back to the times he saw Jack and Geoff hold hands early in the morning, how Ray and Michael always seemed to leave the same room together, how Ryan and Jeremy always left this tension between them during missions where they worked together.

How Ryan and Ray stay up together, how Jack and Michael drive off during the night, how Geoff and Jeremy would argue over movies and talk about other seemingly random things deep into the night.

"It's dangerous in this business." Gavin says.

"Yeah it is." Jack says quietly.

_________________

"Do you think bugs dream?" Gavin asks, laying down on the concrete floor as he finds that it's impossible to move without pain.

It's only been maybe a day, but time isn't real here.

"No." Jack says, sitting next to him.

Crow lady visited again, but this time less was spent talking.

"Can your leg forget to be a leg?" Gavin asks, his brain splitting into two directions.

He saw something in the hallway.

"What kind of dumb question is that?" Jack says, his voice soft.

It was a door. Inside the door, was what had to be some sort of storage filled with files and a computer.

"I mean, what if your leg just forgot how to be a leg."

A computer.

"I'm pretty sure that's impossible."

He needs to get on that computer.

He tries to sit up suddenly and Jack springs into action, helping him up.

They sit.

 


	16. The Man

"Throw him in."

Gavin whips his head to the doors of the cell, frantically getting to his feet once he sees the familiar figure slumped against a bloke in a mask.

He tosses him in and Gavin stops, staring at the slumped body, his heart beating loudly in his ears as he feels himself panic.

"He's not dead." The Crow says, smirking at him, "At least not just yet." She chuckles, motioning for the men in masks to follow her.

Gavin scrambles to Jack, hovering over him and wincing at his face, there's a lot of cuts, a lot of blood, too much blood. Gavin gags and pants, shaking Jack slightly, trying to rouse him.

"Damn it." He mutters, squeezing his eyes shut he attempts to sit him up against the wall. Jack moans but other than that, it's quiet.

Gavin hugs his knees tight and concentrates on Jacks breathing.

In.

Out.

In.

Out.

It takes a very long time for Jack to wake up.

Gavin's eyes droop low. "You okay?" Jack mumbles out. Gavin sits up and scrambles away, chuckling tightly. He clears his throat, "I'm fine, I'm fine, God Jack what about you. Are you okay?" He asks, wincing as Jack straightens up and hisses in pain.

"I've been better." Jack says, his voice low and gravelly. Gavin can hear a slight wheeze to his breathing, he looks away and tries to focus.

"Are you shaking?" Jack asks, squinting at Gavin. He diverts his eyes and looks down at himself. "A little bit." Gavin answers.

"Sit." Jack says, patting the ground beside him. Gavin doesn't argue as he moves next to Jack. Now hyper aware of his own body shaking he wills himself to relax, but it only seems to make things worse.

"It's a bit cold." Gavin lies.

Jack seems to hesitate before lifting his arm and settling it over Gavin's shoulders. Gavin freezes in response, in one brief moment he is utterly motionless, and then it melts away as easily as it came.

Gavin sighs and feels his shaking stop as he leans into Jack, his mind foggy as the past few days rapidly catch up to him.

"Didn't know you where a softie Goldie." Jack mumbles, a smile in his tone.

Gavin nearly flinches but instead closes his eyes and rests his head on Jacks chest. Hearing the mans heart beat nearly reduces him into hysteric tears but, he stops himself.

"Gavin." He says back with surprising clarity.

"Call me Gavin."

________________

"Wakey wakey~."

Gavin's eyes fly open and he makes an attempt to stand up but he is quickly grabbed by one of the men in masks.

He lets himself be dragged out of the cell, glancing at Jack who is still deeply asleep.

Goodbye Jack.

  
It's time.

Yanking his arms away he grabs the knife out of the masked mans belt and plunges it into the side of his throat, pulling it out and facing The Crow.

She has her gun out, aimed directly at him, he's so close he can see the greys in her hair. "You're feisty." She says, smirking wildly at him.

He doesn't move. He doesn't speak.

He must do this perfectly.

"I should shoot you."

She laughs loudly, insanely, she takes a step forward.

"But like you said."

She holds a hand out for the knife and beckons for it, like it's some dog. Like he's some dog. And God does he play right to her hand as he drops the knife into it.

"You're far too valuable."

She says this like it's foul, nearly gagging on the words. She motions him forward with the gun but as soon as she does so Gavin aims low.

He slams her into the wall behind her with as much strength as he can muster and winds her. She attempts to bring her hand up and shoot but before she can Gavin grabs for it and it goes off.

In a disorienting moment Gavin swears he's flying as he falls backwards. His head hits the ground and he sees dots as his ears ring.

He looks ahead and blinks, The Crow is holding a hand to her stomach, red flowing steadily from it.

It smells like copper

He gets up. His hands are sticky and he faintly thinks about throwing up. Stumbling forward he makes it to the third door on the right, it's unlocked and unguarded. Falling into the chair he turns the computer on and nearly goes into a daze as he works on the computer. The keys stick slightly to his fingers and when he looks down it doesn't surprise him at all when they're covered in blood.

Boots echo through the hallway and he doesn't hide. There's yelling for him, for backup, for The Crow. Who would've known someone so blood thirsty would have a name so tame. Christy. The Crow makes much more sense.

He's ripped out of the chair, but it's too late. For them. He did what he needed to do. They drag him down hallways he's never seen before and ends up in a white room.

He's tied to a chair, legs, arms, everything. It seems as though he's been deemed dangerous.

About time.

He takes everything in, the small room, the brick walls, the very serious looking locked door.

"Welcome!" A mans voice says, Gavin can't turn his head to face him but he hears a terrible screeching sound as the man comes near. Once in view Gavin scans the man, he's tall, thin and young. His head is shaved and it looks as though some tattoos are poking out from under his shirt. Other than that the man is normal, almost professional.

The man sets up the chair he was dragging in and sits on it. He stares at Gavin, both of them about five feet away from each other. "You have really caused a disruption today Goldie."

The mans voice is soft.

"Have I now." Gavin says back sarcastically, grinning at the man. He receives nothing, no grimace no smirk, nothing. He is blank.

"So much so that they had to have me come here." He says, his eyes the opposite of his voice. They are hard, sharp, they are searching for something.

"You know what I'm going to ask."

Gavin ignores him, favoring to think about the headache that is starting to form in the back of his skull. "Tell me about them." The man says.

"Are you daft? You know what I'm going to say." Gavin says, rolling his eyes as the man clenches his jaw.

"We've talked to Patillo about you." The man starts, "He says you're new, barely been with them for a few months."

Gavin nods, eyeing the man. Trying to read his face is like trying to read a foreign language.

"Is a few months really worth all this hassle?" The man says, putting his chin in his hand as he stares at Gavin. "After all, it's not like they want you back."

He says this as if it's some big bomb that has been dropped on Gavin, as if he isn’t privy to the oldest torture tactic. As if he cares.

He doesn't react.

"Now, Jack." The man says, chuckling, "They couldn't wait to ask for him back, pleading, bargaining. Like they couldn't live without him." Gavin twitches, inwardly rolling his eyes. Like Geoff would beg.

"But no mention of you." The man says, grinning at him. His eyes so filled with fake sympathy it makes Gavin sick.

"So, the only thing you seem to be good for is information." The man says, leaning forward and staring steadily at Gavin. "So I would suggest coughing it up before I make you."

"Piss off."

The man laughs. Not like The Crow did, it's icy, cold, painful. He gets up and pulls something out of his pocket.

Grabbing Gavin's face he wraps something around his eyes, forcing him into complete darkness. "Get this damn thing off!" Gavin yells, jerking his head. He hears the man walk away without another word.

The door closes.

_____________

  
Hours later he is woken up by a bucket of freezing cold water. He coughs and pants, shivering in his drenched clothes he lets out a string of curses.

The person who came in says nothing as they leave and Gavin is left freezing. Gritting his teeth he quickly comes to realize just what game this new guy is playing.

His stomach growls and his head lulls as he shakes, hearing nothing but his own loud pants and the dripping of water.

He's already so tired.

_____________

The door swings open again but this time, he hears a familiar screeching. The chair. Boots on the cold rock floor pad closer to him and he subconsciously tenses, flinching when someone touches the back of his head, his world filling with light again.

The man is staring at him, the blind fold hanging loosely by his side. He's staring at him, his eyes, Gavin attempts to stare back. His eyes give him away and he knows it but it's better to stare than flinch away.

"Let's try this again."

Gavin says nothing.

"Are you a quiet person Goldie? Do you like the silence?”

Gavin can't say he's had great luck with silence. He's never been a silent person himself. There's always been something to fill it up, always.

"Answer just this then." The man says, getting up from his chair and walking over to Gavin's, pausing at the back of it.

"How long can you stand silence?" He asks. Gavin blanks.  The question echos in his head. The man makes his way back to his chair.

"I'm going to say a few things and you just nod if they apply to you." He says with a smirk, the sentence mocking at best.

"You're British, around your mid twenties, on the run." Gavin never moves, the man doesn't seem to expect him to. "You're smart but impulsive, probably an alcoholic." Gavin raises an eyebrow. The man hums then talks again. "Not an alcoholic, a druggie, alcohol doesn't do what you want it to do."

Gavin feels himself grow cold and his heart picks up, this man is dangerous, far more dangerous than he first thought. The man leans forward again and scans him. "You can make up as much as you want prick." Gavin tosses back.

The man stares piercingly into his eyes. "I can read you Goldie, whether you think I can or not." He gets up and leans down, face to face with Gavin.

"It's all in the eyes." The man slowly smirks and places a hand on Gavin's shoulder, who jerks backwards reflexively. "If I wasn't tied to this bloody chair I would bugger you in the damn eyes." Gavin growls at him as the man ties the blindfold over him. The man grabs his chair and drags it to the exit again.

"See you soon, Goldie."

Gavin huffs and winces when his stomach growls. He's hungry, and cold, and wet. He's tired. He's weak. He desperately wishes he had his sunglasses back.

_______

"Hey assholes!" Gavin yells, his voice cracked and hoarse. He pants and shakes the water off of himself that clings to him and his clothes. He can hear the bucket clang. "Would you bloody stop!” He yells after being doused again.

"I'm awake you idiots!" Gavin yells. He breathes heavily and hunches when the door closes. "Untie me!" He shouts, shivering violently and head foggy.

"Bloody cowards." He says quietly, his breathing ragged. He hears nothing. It's quiet. The water hitting the ground is the only thing that echos. He hums softly, something almost frenzied about it.

"Just gunna leave me in here?" Gavin mumbles to himself, throat raw from yelling. He tastes blood.

"Just gunna leave me in here!" He yells, throat aching and voice harsh. The door opens and he freezes, the sound of metal being dragged throws him into such whiplash that he stays perfectly still.

The blind fold comes off and he looks desperately around the room, enjoying as much as he can. "It's been a bit." The Man says, his voice is deep and hearing it makes Gavin blink, he relishes in being able to hear anything else but himself.

"Let's play that game again, just nod if you feel like it." The Man says, Gavin tries to ignore him, he needs to, the more he pays attention the more the man knows.

He starts to think about anything, everything, desperate to block him out. He thinks about Jack and if he’s still here, thinks about Geoff and if he’s freaking out, about Ryan, Ray, Jeremy, Michael. 437.

“437.” He says it out loud, interrupting the man. “437?” The Man asks. 437 he repeats it in his head, he’s not listening to what the man is saying.

437\. It’s something, he holds onto it with such strength that he effectively blocks out The Man.

Until, “They paid for Jack, he’s gone.” Gavin looks at him with wide eyes, not saying anything.

“You’re the only one left. Might want to rethink about working for us.” He says. That can’t be right, how long has he been in here? Is Jack really out?He should be happy, why does he feel like his stomach is a pit they didn’t get him back they don’t want _him_ back. He’s alone again.

“You have two options here Goldie. Either you join us or we kill you.” The Man says.

Gavin looks at him and chuckles pitifully , “Then you better just kill me then.” He says flatly. The Man tenses, a cold anger surrounds him, he gets up.

In his hand is the blindfold and Gavin yanks back in the chair, “Get that the hell away!” He screams, The Man chuckles and jerks Gavin’s face towards him and ties it tightly.

He can hear the chair being dragged, “Take it off!” He yells again, pulling hard on his binds to the chair, cutting his skin. The door shuts.

“Come back here you cunt!” He yells, his throat bleeds. “Take it off!” The water is still dripping off of him and it echos all around him as his pants and breaks into frustrated sobs.

His throat tastes like copper.


	17. A Shaky Step

Nothing is truly silent.

Even when it seems like something is utterly and totally quiet, something still makes noise. For Gavin it's his breathing, the slight creaks from the chair, and his heart.

The constant thumping loud in his ears telling him he's alive, that he's here. The only thing telling him that. He's in a limbo between sleep and wake, life and death. His head nods but never falls limp.

The door opens and he can't bring himself to flinch, not even when he hears the sound of the chair scrapping across the hard floor. Not even when the blindfold is taken off. Not even when The Man speaks.

"This is your last chance." He says, the words hitting Gavin's ears and falling flat. There's a silence, different from the rest, that fills the air. It's final, it's heavy, it's deafening.

The Man stares at him, he seems angry. "Too bad such a talent will be wasted." He says. He stays for a few more minutes then stands up, grabbing the blindfold out and smirking at Gavin. "The next time you hear this door open, it'll be me coming to put a bullet in your head."

He quickly ties the blindfold and drags the chair out with him, leaving the room.

Gavins thoughts drift, the threat of death seemingly the last thing on his mind. He thinks of a face, a face that hasn't left his mind in a long time. Fitting, Gavin thinks, that he remembers him now. The dead thinking about the dead.

His thoughts shift again and he sees Jeremy, out of everything to think about in his last hours, he thinks of Jeremy and the way he smiles. How his laugh lights up a room and how flustered he got when Gavin first joined.

He thinks of the crew and his throat tightens in a silent sob as flashes of them fly through his head. He's failed them. He was the ace up their sleeve, and this is the best he could do for them.

He is going to sit here and die, and Geoff will sit in the base wondering why he ever thought the Golden Boy was worth brining on. He let them down, but it doesn't matter anymore.

Gavin breathes harshly as he feels his heart beat in his ears. It won't be long now.

~

The door opens with a loud slam, it's enough to cause Gavin to freeze, his breathing halting. _"The next time you hear this door open, it'll be me coming to put a bullet in your head."_ There is no chair this time as the footsteps make their way over to him rapidly, he tenses as they get closer. He wonders if he'll feel any pain or not.

His blind fold is ripped off, and he forces himself to turn to The Man.

"Ryan?" Gavin says hoarsely, squinting at the figure in front of him, dressed from head to toe in black, with splashes of red about. His face is painted over but Gavin easily recognizes the skull design and the mans piercing blue eyes.

Ryan swears under his breath and drops to his knees. "They're all dead out there. All of those masked bastards." Ryan hisses out while working on the bonds around his hands. Gavin's eyes are wide, he must be seeing things.

"Jack." Gavin forces out of his raw throat, "We found him, the others are getting him out." Ryan mutters, cutting the final bond on Gavin's arms. He pulls them to his chest and gazes at his bleeding and sore wrists in a daze and allows himself to be hoisted up when Ryan undoes the ropes tying his legs.

The hallway used to be white. Bodies are strewn about the place and blood covers it, the smell alone makes Gavin gag, clenching tightly to Ryans jacket as he quickly gets light headed from everything.

He hears another voice and identifies it almost immediately. "Ryan!" Michael yells, rushing over to him and stumbling when he notices Gavin in his arms. He pauses but clears his throat, "Thank God, the others are already with Jack let's go." He says, the two picking up speed.

Things move in slow motion. Red and white blur and he feels fuzzy, a constant motion of up and down lulling him, he is tired. Walking out of the building blinds him, barely rising his hand high enough to block anything, he turns his head into Ryan's jacket. Much easier.

He's sat down, there's commotion and words and noise and he can feel a dry sob rise in his throat but he stays silent because he is back. He wants to close his eyes and hide, but the dark is no longer comforting. He spies Jack.

His eyes are dull, bags upon bags underneath them. New scars older scars, no way has he been gone, no way did he get out before now. Gavin was lied to.

Jack looks at him and smiles. It looks like it hurts. It hurts Gavin.

He leans his head back and stares at the ceiling, painfully aware of the eyes on him. What next? What does he do? He's gotten too close. Far, far too close.

His head slumps suddenly, his eyes snapping shut. Someone puts a hand on him, he jerks back up and finds Jeremy in front of him. "Look at me." Jeremy says sternly, much different from normal Jeremy.

Gavin does so and his eyes attempt to close again. "Hey, open your eyes, your head looks fucked." Jeremy says, his hand heavy on Gavins shoulder. Gavin ignores him, he can only imagine what he looks like right now, "'M bloody top." He slurs, eyes darting away from Jeremy.

"Goldie, god damn it." Jeremy hisses once Gavin's head slumps again, he's so exhausted. Jeremy attempts to rile him, getting more and more frustrated. "Just let me sleep Lil' J." Gavin slurs again.

"Gavin." He looks up, staring at the first person to call him that in a long time. Jack stares back at him, nursing his arm. "Listen to him." He says flatly, Gavin clenching his jaw.

"Gavin.." Ryan trails off from his spot next to Jack. " 'S my damn name." Gavin mutters, forcing his head up. Jeremy sighs in relief, slightly eyeing between Jack and Gavin.

Gavin forces his eyes open, his head is the heaviest it's ever been. He's so tired he feels like he's going crazy. He searches for anything.

"Michael."

The fiery red head turns to him from the passenger seat, "Yeah?" He says softly, eyes hesitant to meet Gavin's. "437.” He repeats, Michael looking at him cluelessly. “4:37 that’s how long it took you to break down the door.” Again, Michael looks at him like he’s growing a horn. “You asked me to time you and I did and I wasn’t able to tell you before all this rubbish happened and everything went cock up but I didn’t forget.” Gavin feels like he’s rambling, or rather, he knows that he’s rambling but things have been too crazy for something not to break and if that something is his speech then so be it because it sure as hell won’t be his eyes because he is too damn dehydrated to start crying now.

“Jesus christ dude slow down, you’re here now, you have all the time in the world to explain.” Michael says strangely soothing like. Gavin closes his eyes tightly and feels himself shaking again. God damn it everything is happening at once the world is too bright too loud.

Someone gingerly pulls Gavin closer to them, judging by the arms he guesses Jeremy, opening his eyes he confirms his thoughts. “I’m tired Jeremy.” He says so quietly it could be considered a whisper.

“I know.”

He continues to shake, nearly becoming a concern as they near the base. Gavin can feel himself giving out and he takes another look over at Jack, the man concerned over his own injuries, and then at Jeremy.

His vision goes black.

~

Beeping rouses him awake, his eyes slow to open and his brain foggy. He recognizes the room but only barely. The infirmary.

He turns his head, his neck stiff. Startled, he sees someone in the bed next to his, Jack. His leg is propped up and he’s hooked up to an IV, Gavin furrows his brows and looks down at his arm, seeing his very own IV. He can’t tell if it’s the stuff in the IV making him nauseous or the IV itself.

He turns his head again and nearly jumps out of the bed as he sees a person sitting in the chair next to him.

Ray grins.

Gavin feels himself getting sleepy again, he tries to say anything but his throat closes on itself. They look at each other, both reading the silence, Ray gets up and lets his hand linger on top of Gavin’s. “Take care of ‘em Gav.”

His eyes blink slowly and he manages a drugged up smile towards Ray, “I’ll try.” He whispers hoarsely. He blinks and Ray is gone.

He can’t be sure what he saw was real, he turns back to Jack and hears the man’s snores, he grins and let’s his eyes fall.

~

The second time he wakes up it’s from the lack of noise. His eyes bolt open and he turns to where he thought Jack was, seeing nothing but darkness. His breathing picks up drastically, he attempts to sit up, trying once and falling back. He tries again and sits up, winded and pained.

He searches his arm and sighs in relief that his IV is no longer there. He couldn’t pull one out, he would just as easily stab himself.

He swings his legs over and tests them. They’re wobbly but fine, fine enough at least. He stands up and nearly passes out, grabbing the side table he steadies himself. He notices that he’s not in the same clothes he was, he’s nearly swimming in a shirt that must be either Ryan or Jacks, and a loose pair of sweatpants cling to his hips.

He doesn’t think about how they got on him.

He stumbles to the door and opens it with little regard as to the noise. The hallway is slightly lit, caused a huge sigh to come from Gavin as he slumps against the wall, holding himself as he takes in the hum of the refrigerator and the snoring of whoever is in the next room.

He eventually pushes off the wall, quietly going to his room, he opens the door and finds it just as he left it. He only stumbles a bit as he gathers his things, vision barely doubling as he leaves his room bare, his possessions fitting into the same bag he brought them in.

He shoulders it and steels himself as he walks to the door. He opens it and is shocked by the slight cold, wishing he had warmer clothes on him. He clenches his fist and tries to force himself to leave.

“You’re going to leave without saying goodbye?”

Gavin whips around, at the protest of his aching head, and faces Geoff, he slowly shuts the door. “I was going to leave, before you make me.” Gavin says flatly, his voice cracking.

“Make you?” Geoff asks, his arms crossed and one eyebrow raised, he could not look more like a disappointed parent. “Fired me. Before you fired me.” Gavin explains, unmoving.

“I wouldn’t-“ Gavin cuts off Geoff, “I have a friend who does the same work as me, I’ll give her your info. I learned everything from her, she’ll do great.” He says, voice cold.

“Thats not what I-“ Once again Gavin interrupts him, “If you need a hacker they’re a dime a dozen.” He says, looking away from Geoff. “I’m not going to fire you!” Geoff blurts out, his hands up in disbelief.

“You don’t need to keep me here out of pity.” Gavin says, turning back towards the door, he’s stopped by a hand on his shoulder. “Pity!? What the fuck are you talking about?” Geoff says, his eyes searching Gavins.

“I’m the one who messed up Geoff, I don’t need the pity, just go take care of Jack...” Gavin says his voice soft near the end, his eyes drifting back towards the door. “Hey dick will you fucking look at me and let me talk!” Geoff says loudly, shocking Gavin as he turns his eyes back up to Geoff.

“That shit was no ones fault.” He starts, his hand still on Gavin’s shoulder, the entire thing far too emotional for Gavin’s liking. “No one fucked up and no one is getting fired.”

“I fucked up Geoff! I let those bastards take Jack and I wasn’t good enough to get us out of there!” Gavin argues back, both of them rising in volume.

“You didn’t fuck up Gavin!” Geoff yells, his fists clenched. “I fucked up okay?! I’m the one that made you do the mission with barely any time to plan. I’m the one that spread us so thin, I’m the one that’s in charge so when I say you didn’t fuck up you didn’t, okay!” Geoff says, his breathing odd and harsh.

The two fall quiet.

“If you want to leave you can.” Geoff says quietly, eyes staring hard at Gavin. “But I’m not going to make you.” He finishes. “This would be so much easier if you hated me, if you blamed me.” Gavin says back, staring equally as hard.

“Things like this aren’t easy, but we’re a Crew, we’re a family. We get through it.” Geoff says softly. “All of this fuss.” Gavin whispers, thinking to himself.

“I have coffee brewing.”

Gavin slowly sets his bag off to the side and sighs.

“That sounds bloody amazing.”


	18. Starting

Geoff hands a mug to Gavin, their fingers brushing against each other. "How do you feel." Geoff asks as he sits on the stool across from Gavin, his elbows propped up on the table. He has bags under his eyes.

"Better." Gavin breathes, the once relentless pounding in his head now a dull thud, his jaw aches and his body feels raw. "Jack?" He asks, looking down into his mug.

"Sleeping, his legs messed up but, other than that, he's doing good." He says, taking a drink out of his mug. They sit and they drink and it feels ridiculous after the past few days and Gavin wants to cry and laugh at the same time but instead he clears his throat, "How'd you find us?"

"The alert sent to the penthouse, it was enough to get a general idea." Geoff answers. Gavin looks down into his mug, he'd nearly forgotten he'd even sent the signal. God how long ago was that. He doesn't even want to estimate a time, it makes it almost too real.

They drink again, the sun is starting to come up, Gavin's mug is almost empty. He desperately does not want this to end but so many things are still nagging him in the back of his mind, so many questions, unknown variables, people, he doesn't know where to start.

Thankfully Geoff does.

"Ray left yesterday." He says quietly, gazing at the window to his right, his eyes looking beyond the window. "We've been ready for it for a while but, it still hurts." Geoff continues, eyes seemingly far away. "You knew he would leave?" Gavin asks softly, he is out of coffee.

"We all did, he never wanted this fame, this visibility. He was satisfied with what he had." Geoff says, placing his mug to the side. "And you weren't?" Gavin asks, watching the way Geoff's lips curl in a devilish smirk as he turns to him. "I'm never satisfied."

Gavin chuckles, it's bittersweet, like the taste in his mouth, like the look in Geoff's eyes, like the sun as it casts light into the kitchen. Sometimes he wishes time would freeze, or slow down. Sometimes he wishes he could live in a moment forever, he doesn't think he would ever get tired of this one.

But he does not control the flow of time.

Ryan walks into the room, rubbing at his eyes and halting once he sees the two sitting together at the table. He looks like Geoff, dark bags, scruffy, but happy.

"Morning." He says huskily, his voice slightly hoarse. Geoff leans to the coffee pot and pours Ryan a mug, he sits next to Gavin. Either consciously or not Ryan gravitates towards Gavin, their arms nearly brushing as Ryan grabs for his coffee.

Gavin doesn't seem to care nearly as much as he use to. That should scare him, so much, in fact that he should run out of the front door and never come back, create a new life, new city, new name. Instead he bumps his leg into Ryan's, the motion comforting in a way he can’t explain.

"Glad to see you up." Ryan comments, raising the mug to his lips. "Little fucker tried to run out of the penthouse." Geoff comments. Ryan nearly chokes on his drink, turning his head to Gavin whose eyes look everywhere but at the bewildered man to his right. Interventions are not his favorite thing in the world.

Ryan doesn't say anything but the way his eyes pierce him gives Gavin a good idea as to what he thinks. Ryan's eyes are very blue, an icy blue, Gavin suddenly remembers the last time he saw these eyes up close.

He flushes thinking back to how Ryan carried him with ease, are you supposed to thank someone when they do that? Is it a kind of unspoken thanks or should he just say it. God how long has he been staring at Ryan's eyes.

There's some commotion in the hallway as several voices rise. Something clanks and Michael is the first through the doorway, his hair is an utter mess.

Behind him more clatters and eventually Jack appears, his leg is bandaged and he's walking with crutches, but he looks better than he has in days.

Everyone finds a seat at the table, Geoff quietly pouring more coffee. "Breakfast?" Ryan suggests, everyone nodding and murmuring in agreement. Ryan gets up and heads to the stove, Jeremy slipping into Ryan's empty seat.

No one knows where to start. Or, maybe no one wants to start.

Either way Ryan is cooking something on the stove and Jeremy makes darting glances at Gavin, Gavin stares at his mug. Jack stares out the window. Geoff stares at Jack.

Michael can't seem to pick a direction.

There's a lot of staring and silence in the morning. Is it awkwardness? Is it fear? Is it worry?

"Who were they." Gavin asks without thinking, Jeremy tenses next to him, he knows the answer, Gavin assumes everyone does but him. What irony.

At first no one jumps to answer the question, then it seems as though they were waiting for Geoff. "Leftovers, bunch of dicks from a dead gang." He says.

"What gang?" Comes the follow up. "The Corps, their leader was killed not so long ago." Geoff answers again. The name doesn't ring a bell. Of course Gavin hasn't really been in the city long enough to of heard it.

"Never heard of the blokes." Gavin says, pushing around his mug. "They're mostly all gone." Michael says, his elbows on the table while his head rests in his hands. "Mostly?"

Geoff gets up from the table, going through the living room and most likely into the heist room. "Eggs?" Ryan asks, dishing out the slightly over cooked eggs. Gavin forgets the last time he ate. He quickly grabs a plate, trying not to be too impatient about it.

Geoff comes back with a rolled up piece of paper in his hands, he pushes the dishes and racks of things out of the middle of the table and lays the paper flat. It's a map.

Gavin traces the scattered lines and circles with his eyes, noting the different handwritings all over it.

"This-" Geoff says, circling the middle of Achievement City, “Use to be the Corp dicks.” Geoff drags his finger down and circles the lower left of the map. “And this was us, kinda small but still kicking ass.”

“About a year ago all of this-“ Geoff recircles the middle of the map. “Was taken over or reclaimed by other gangs and the cops.” He says, looking over at Jack.

“Jack you’re better at this.” Geoff says, moving the map closer to him. “Ah yes, my best skill, reading maps.” Jack jokes, but turns it towards himself.

“So the Corps split up, some still trying to put the old gang back together here and there but there’s really only two main splits.” Jack points to the large run down part of town, “You have the run down part of the city under Flynt and the high priced luxury assholes with Coal.” Jack explains.

“Flynt? Coal?” Gavin asks, already getting confused.

“The two sons of the old Corps gang leader.” Jeremy says.

“And we have something they want?” Gavin asks, recalling what crow lady had told him. No one speaks. This seems to be a sensitive question. What could they possibly have that’s that bad.

“Yeah, we stole the key to like millions of dollars from the old Corp gang.” Michael says, the grin on his face is proud. “We don’t have the key!” Jack says, confusing Gavin even more, honestly he’s getting use to it.

“We have one of three keys.” Ryan corrects. “Who has the other two?!” Gavin asks, his head hurts and he can’t tell if it’s from the head injury or the crews dog shit explanations.

“Flynt-“  
“Coal-“

“...where is the money.” Gavin asks, why use a key when bombs are an option. “You need all three keys to find it.” Jack says.

“And that’s why the old Corps kidnapped-“

“Yup.”

“And you guys haven’t gotten the other keys because...”

“We where waiting for you to prove yourself.” Geoff says, picking up the map again and sliding it to the side. “Well, bloody well did that.”

“Can’t argue there.” Jeremy mumbles. Silence again. Bollocks.

“So, stealing sounds bloody top right now.” Gavin says, trying to get everyone’s minds off kidnapping and things like it, which is hard when you’re a bunch of cold blooded criminals.

“Nope, you are staying here until I fucking say so, same as Jack.” Geoff says, causing Gavin to frown and give him a side glare. Jack looks unaffected, must of already of known.

“It’s okay Gavin, Jeremy and Michael have already volunteered to be your nurses.” Ryan says, Gavins eyes going between both Michael and Jeremy.

“It’s funny that you think that.” Michael says, “When was this decided?!” Jeremy says shrilly. “Well Jack can’t do it and Geoff and I are busy doing things that don’t involve you two so...” Ryan says, trailing off.

“I am on board with this.” Gavin says, flashing a wide grin at the both of them. They groan loudly and over dramatically.

“He’s fine, just make sure he doesn’t fucking pass out or anything.” Geoff says, sticking the last bit of eggs into his mouth and getting up from the table. “Ryan and I are off to do shit without you dicks, see you later.” He says, talking a minute to leans over to Jack and whisper in his ear, leaving with a quick peck.

Ryan waves and grabs his mask from the same place the keys are at. If not weird at least it’s convenient.

Gavin looks down at his plate and takes a bite of his eggs. His body cringes into itself and he is totally unsure how an egg can be both burnt and cold at the same time.

He supposes if he was better with analogies it could be a killer one.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Sorry that this chapter is a tad overdue and is mostly talking but a lot of info is now revealed! If you want to see more into my writing process or more likely me just complaining about writers block feel free to follow me on tumblr @nuggetsofross


	19. Thinking About You

It's not often said, or more realistically it's very often said, that too much of a good thing is never a good thing. Obviously they mean things like sugar and alcohol. Gavin's starting to wonder if that means people too.

He's not an introvert. No, people are his life his blood line. But this is something completely different. This is too much...friendship? God, only he would say that.

Playing video games on its own is fun enough. Playing video games with the lads is a life changing experience. He's never felt more alive than he does watching Michael brutally murder his character in a video game.

Jeremys laugh is loud in his ears as he sits next to him, leg brushing his own as the man spasms in laughter. Gavin holds back his own chuckles and rolls his eyes with a smirk. Michael is loudly proclaiming victory. The room feels light.

He doesn't want to think of before.

He wants to trust, he wants to feel safe with them. He can almost believe it when Michael, despite his earlier yelling, protects him from a murder attempt. "You're dog shit at this game." Michael provides once he deals with the character on screen.

Gavin agrees, his eyes are heavy and his smile is only slightly subdued. He is only slightly subdued.

Gavin wonders if falling asleep on the couch would be a good idea while Jeremy wins the game for maybe the fifth time. It's pitch black in the rest of the pent house, Jack going to bed a few hours ago. The sound of virtual violence fill the room.

"I'm fucking tired." Jeremy says, stretching his arms above him, Gavin slyly watches. Jeremy could easily break him in half and he doesn't know why that makes him feel the opposite of fear.

"Me too, it's fucking bed time boys!" Michael says, rising and setting his controller on the table, cracking his back. The sound makes Gavin cringe, and he follows Michaels suite by putting his controller down.

"You good Gav?" Jeremy asks as he starts to his room, "Bloody fantastic Lil J." He says softly, smiling at him reassuringly. Gavin is the last to head to his room, hanging back like he's looking for something. Really he's just looking for an excuse to keep the light on.

He trails to his room for the second time today. Shutting the door behind him.

Grabbing on a comfortable pair of clothes he gets into his bed. He wants to be fine.

Seconds go by. Minutes. Hours. He's unable to tell exactly and it leaves him uneasy. He was tired just a moment ago, he swears.

His breathing is unnaturally loud. His eyes are dry. He sits bolt up, rubbing at his eyes. He stays like that. "Damn it." He whispers, chewing at his lip as he keeps his head in his hands.

Gavin grabs his phone. It's 3:24.

He lays back down, forcing his eyes to close.

Gavins room is very quiet. His jaw clenches again and he turns to his side.

...

...

Gavin picks up his phone. It's 3:26.

His knuckles go white and he hurls his phone at the wall, pushing his hands down on his head. His eyes sting.

He freezes and hears footsteps down the hall, hurrying to his room. The door opens and a dark shadow appears.

"Gavin?" A voice says, rough from sleep. "Michael." Gavin says, face flushing in embarrassment. “What happened, I heard something.” Michael says, walking into the room. “It was nothing.” Gavin says softly, awkwardly.

Michael closes the door behind him but does not move. “It’s late.” He says lowly, Gavin nodding his head. “How long have you been up?” Michael asks bluntly. Not answering Gavin lowers his head and rubs at his eyes again.

“All bloody night.” He says almost silently. Michael walks to the bed and Gavin moves over, surprise keeping him silent. Michael sits on the bed and yawns, it sounds fake.

If it wasn’t Michael, this would be awkward, or Gavin thinks. Michael pulls the blanket over himself, turning away from Gavin. “Get some sleep.” He mutters.

Gavin slowly lays back down, he doesn’t know what to do so he listens to Michael. He shuts his eyes and tenses up, before hearing Michael breath next to him, he lets out a sigh of relief and turns. He doesn’t want to make this weird but he thinks the line has already been crossed.

He can’t see Michael in the darkness, only a shadow of a body next to him. Michael turns towards him, both of them facing each other. Gavin can feel Michaels frown, “You always make this shit weird Gav.” He says, probably referencing Gavin’s eyes as they are wide and open.

He closes them. “Sorry.” He mumbles, pulling the blanket up further. It’s nice to know Michael feels as awkward as he does. The room isn’t as quiet anymore. A blessing Gavin attributes to Michael.

Most of the tension leaves Gavin’s body as he hears Michaels soft breathing next to him, he can nearly feel the heat radiating from him. For reasons Gavin can’t explain he want to touch Michael, whether it’s to confirm that yes he is alive and here and sleeping in Gavin’s bed, or because of something deeper, he leaves it up to his imagination.

He’s worn out and nearly jolts when Michaels leg touches his own. Michael stays silent, Gavin stays silent, Michael continues to breath next to him. He smiles in his exhausted induced happiness. He tries to convince himself he hates it but he knows he doesn’t.

~

His eyes open and he is woefully alone. The only sign that someone other than himself was here are the crumpled blankets to his side.

He doesn’t know how to feel, like usual, and so he doesn’t.

He sits up and blearily looks around for his phone, which he realizes is on the floor with a large crack across the screen. He sighs and picks it up. It’s 10:37.

Getting dressed is a laborious process in the morning, and is hardly ever worth it. But, he supposes he has an image to keep up.

Walking to the bathroom he dresses in some button down and trousers that were not worth the price he paid. He looks in the mirror and wonders if the bags under his eyes and the one black eye he has could be considered a fashion statement. He decides it is a statement, just not one about fashion.

He makes himself appropriate and clean and grabs his phone on the way out of his room, slipping it into his pocket. He smells food.

He opens his door, the way to the kitchen is quiet. The whole penthouse is quiet.

He steps into the kitchen and nearly balks at the sight. Jeremy stands at the stove, spatula up and a very...graphic apron tied around his waist. It’s very homely.

Jeremy turns around and Gavin has never seen someones cheeks turn red that fast before. “Looking good lil J.” Gavin purrs while giggling.

“Shut up and eat.” Jeremy says, sliding him a plate of what looks like pancakes. “My cooking skills have gone, er, down hill since Jack started cooking for everyone.” Jeremy mumbles, Gavin raising an eyebrow at him. He motions for a fork and takes a bite.

Okay, it’s a bit under done. But is he going to tell Jeremy that? God no.

“It’s bloody delicious.” Gavin says, Jeremy sighing under his breath. Gavin takes a seat and eats while he watches Jeremy cook.

Not going to lie Gavin appreciates the view and can’t help but wonder if what he’s doing is helping his whole don’t get too close plan but these days he can’t bring himself to care.

Jeremy drops his spatula after attempting to do some sort of trick with it and looks backwards at Gavin with the blankest stare.

Jeremy bends down to get the spatula and Gavin can confirm that he does not care in the slightest what his brain thinks because he is not going to pass up this view. Gavin looks down before Jeremy can catch him staring.

“Where’d Michael go?” Gavin says in between bites, “Shopping, kinda forgot to get food the past few days.” He says, Gavin frowning at his pancakes. “Jack went with him and I’m here to be the babysitter.” Jeremy continues with fake enthusiasm, either unaware of the weird mood or fighting through it.

“Lucky you.” Gavin says, smiling at Jeremy as he looks behind him and sneers. “I was hoping you’d get up soon.” Jeremy says, turning off the stove. “Why so I could try your delectable pancakes?” Gavin says, making a point to eat a large bite of said pancakes.

“No, so I could have something to drink and not get yelled at by Jack. He’d kill me if I started drinking while you were asleep.” He admits, grabbing himself a plate. “Jesus Jeremy it’s like 11.” Gavin says, shaking his head.

“Oh, I’m aware.” Jeremy says back with way too much confidence from someone talking about day drinking. Regardless Gavin laughs loudly.

Jeremy goes to sit down and pulls out his seat.

The sound of the chair scraping against the floor sucks the air out of Gavin’s lungs and makes him dizzy. He thinks he’s falling back.

He hears Jeremy say his name.

Gavin looks around and finds himself on the floor, his head aching and his body being propped up by Jeremy. “What...” Gavin mumbles to himself, feeling the back of his head. He pulls it away and sees blood, ah, must of hit his head.

How’d he hit his head? “Gav.” Jeremy says, slightly shaking him. “Hm?” Gavin hums, looking down at his hand. Jeremy helps him up, saying things that Gavin is too dazed to hear. He ends up in the bathroom being told to sit.

He does so and the brightness of the bathroom shocks him back to reality.

“Turn your head.” Jeremy says softly, he doesn’t look or sound worried, but his hands shake. Dabbing at the back of Gavin’s head, he doesn’t speak, Gavin wants him to though.

“It was the chair.” Gavin says, feeling he owes him something, an apology, or a reason. He tries to think about it, to make it seem reasonable. He quickly find out he really doesn’t want to explain it. “The sound.” He finishes.

Jeremy breathes out, a small smile on his face as he bandages Gavins head. “It’s fine dude.” Gavin flinches and feels something in his pocket, he pulls out his phone.

It’s completely shattered and tiny bits of glass get into his fingers. Gavin drops it out of shock and it breaks all over the ground, Gavin curses and goes to pick it back up before Jeremy stops him. “Hey idiot. Leave it.” He says with about as much compassion as you can when you use the word idiot.

Gavin looks down and his hands are bloody and hurt. He wants to cry. But he won’t. He won’t let himself. He doesn’t think he can.

“I’m sorry.” Gavin says again, this time it means more, it’s not just for the last five minutes. It’s not just an apology. Jeremy sighs and grabs Gavins wrists, squatting to get a look at them.

“Gavin you’re a god damn mess.” He says breathlessly.

Gavin laughs, loudly, too loudly. But it’s okay because Jeremy joins in, it almost feels like he’s crying, almost, but then again Jeremy’s doing it and why would Jeremy be crying.

Jeremy rubs at his eyes and Gavin attempts to do the same without getting glass or blood in them.

Jeremy wipes the blood off Gavins hands and starts to remove the tiny shards. They’re quiet but not silent. The water makes his hands sting and makes Gavin hiss, but he feels better.

Yeah, that’s what he feels.

“Ruined my damn trousers.” Gavin mutters, glaring at them. “What about your hands?” Jeremy says sarcastically, “Well they’re bloody well fine aren’t they Jeremy...quite literally too.” Gavin says as he flexes his hands and then flinches.

“Nearly fine.” Gavin says, flashing Jeremy a smile once he rolls his eyes. “You’re the clumsiest person I have ever met.” Mutters Jeremy, grabbing the bandages from under the sink.

Jeremy grabs Gavin’s hand then hesitates before he starts to wrap. Gavin forces himself not to blush because he doesn’t want to admit it but this is the closest he’s gotten to someone in far too long. Of course Jeremy seems to be affected as well, his ears a bright pink.

With one hand down he starts the other and Gavin glances at the bandaged one. It’s done well, Jeremy must know his shit.

Jeremy finishes the second hand and looks up at him, raising his hand to Gavin’s face. He cups Gavin’s cheek and Gavin freezes in utter shock. Jeremy turns Gavin’s head to the side and back, looking over his face and the top of his head.

“Am I good Dr. Dooley?” Gavin asks a little out of breath. Jeremy flushes and clears his throat, his eyes never leaving Gavin’s face. “Really good, Gavin.” Jeremy says, and Gavin would swear that sounded like he was flirting with Gavin, but Jeremy would never flirt with Gavin. Despite all his fan crushes and overall admiration, it only went as far as that, Jeremy appreciates what Gavin does, likes his abilities. Not Gavin.

Or at least that’s what Gavin thinks before Jeremy leans into Gavin and kisses him faster than he can react.

His eyes slip close subconsciously, the feeling of Jeremy moving against him foreign but good. Really good. Almost too good.

The front door slams open and Gavin can hear both Michael and Jacks voices. Jeremy stumbles back and Gavin’s eyes open. They stare at each other for what feels like forever. Neither of them know what the next step is. That is until Jeremy grabs the handle to the bathroom door and opens it, leaving Gavin in the bathroom.

Gavin is still shocked. He’s not sure the kiss was a good idea, then again he doesn’t think him being in the crew is a good idea and yet. His lips tingle, he can’t remember the last time he felt tingly. It’s good. It’s scary. It’s...

Gavin should really clean up his phone before anyone comes in.

He doesn’t like feeling tingly right now.

~

“You’re on Tv!” Jack yells from the sofa, Gavin sitting on the other side of it. He looks up at the television and sees Ryan’s familiar mask, Geoff and his tacky suit not too far off.

Everyone floods in, Ryan and Geoff still a bit breathless from their escapade to the penthouse only a few moments ago. Gavin eyes Jeremy who stares at the television, his lips curling like a cartoon villain.

Gavin can almost feel Jeremys lips against his again. It makes him feel, he doesn’t like that.

Ryan stands behind Gavin, a hand on the sofa to the right of his head. “Fakes at it again.” Jack reads off the screen. “Fakes possibly biggest gang in city.” Geoff reads off proudly, sneering at the screen. Gavin feels himself well up with pride, a venomous smile on his lips.

“Police woefully out gunned!” Michael reads, nearly cheering. “Vagabond still 1# sexiest murderer in Achievement City.” Ryan says, smirking to himself.

“It did not say that.” Gavin butts in, a chorus of agreements and laughter follow. “Maybe you can’t read fast enough, it was up there.” Ryan says, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Ryan I’m not even sure if you can read.” Gavin shoots back, Geoff gasping with laughter as Ryan frowns at the both of them. “I can read better than your posh ass.” Ryan says, “Ryan! You have a history of flubbing.” Gavin says.

The rest if the crew nods at Gavins sentence. “He’s gotta point Rye.” Jeremy says, patting him on the shoulder. “I’m going to make a new mask out of your face skin.” Ryan says bluntly.

Everyone takes a second after that one.

“Ryan, I know I say this a lot, but you’re fucked up dude.” Geoff says, Ryan smiling and shrugging.

Things feel good. Gavin’s tired of saying they don’t. Tired of saying he doesn’t want them to feel good.

~

Gavin has an alarm clock now, he’s borrowing an old one from Geoff after complaining about breaking his phone and having no clock in his room.

Now it’s dark and quiet and he can see the time constantly. The alarm clock was a bad idea.

He wishes it was three years ago, tonight especially, he wishes it wasn’t so dark out. Gavin wishes he was laying next to him tonight. But three years is well, three years. Things don’t go back from that. No matter how long and how much you wish they could.

Maybe wishing for things to be normal again isn’t what he should be doing.

Maybe. Maybe he’s thinking about things too much. The ghost of Jeremy’s lips take over his thoughts and he turns away from the alarm.

Maybe he doesn’t know what he should be doing after all.

Someone knocks quietly on the door, Gavin sits up and glances at the clock.

It’s 1:13.

“Hello?” Gavin responds quietly, the door opening. He can’t see who it is, but the shadow of hair gives it away. “Can’t sleep?” Michael asks, Gavin shaking his head, then promptly realizing that Michael can’t see him, answers him, “Not really.”

Michael hums and walks to the bed, the same process as last night repeating. “Me neither.” He says quietly.

Instantly, the feeling and sound of Michael near him calms him down. Causing a bag of mixed feelings from Gavin.

It’s quiet for a bit longer.

“Jeremy, er, told me what happened between you two.” Michael says, in a way that causes Gavin to tense. He’s never heard Michael sound nervous before.

“He likes you.” Michael goes on to say, and it’s all just a bit much for Gavin, who easily reverts back to humour.

“The kiss didn’t give that away?” He asks in a half chuckle half dry voice. It doesn’t make Michael chuckle. “Are you okay with that?” He asks, and Gavin can feel him stare at him through the darkness.

“I-uh..I don’t know.” Gavin answers honestly, feeling way to comfortable discussing his feelings with Michael. In the cover of darkness he guesses anything is safe to talk about.

“Don’t feel..pressured.” Michael says, stopping to think about his next words. “Jeremy won’t make you uh do anything like that.” Michael says, his wording awkward, too rehearsed.

“What else.” Gavin says, bracing himself, “What?” Michael says confused, “There’s more.” Gavin says, he was always good at reading when people where holding back. This time is no exception.

Michael curses lowly, rubbing his face. He takes a moment to think. He takes longer than just a moment. He takes a long time to speak.

“We all...like you.” Michael says slowly and unsure. Gavin tenses, his brain races. “Wait, wait just chill out for a second.” Michael says placing a hand on Gavin as he sits up.

Michael sits up as well, Gavin can see that he runs a hand through his messy hair. Gavin can feel himself think, he can feel every bad scenario and outcome before they happen. He wonders if Michael can feel the same.

“I just wanted to tell you, I’m not saying we should all start fucking each other.” Michael starts, sounding more sure of himself. “I’ve been where you are and you’re probably fucking scared and I didn’t want to make it worse.” Michael says, picking at the duvet on the bed.

“When did you...” It’s the only question that comes to Gavin’s mind, and he can’t even ask it right.

“For some since the beginning but like, me? I don’t fucking know it just happened.” Michael says, obviously not the most well spoken.

“You didn’t even know my name.” Gavin breathes out, holding himself tightly as he tries to find out just, how someone could like him when he’s not even sure he trusts them. Does that make him an asshole? Does that make them naive? They can’t be naive, all of them at once?

All of them. Oh my god all of them. Gavin can’t wrap it around his head, obviously he enjoys the company of them all, even as much as he hates to admit it. But like them all.

Gavin doesn’t want to think about how easy a jump his brain can make between the two. It’s too easy. From enjoy to like, from like to...

“Didn’t matter, we didn’t or uh I didn’t need a name, y’know? All I thought was damn this guy is fucking annoying and I really like his ass.” Michael tries to make Gavin laugh a bit, it kind of succeeds.

“So you guys like my body, the whole Goldie thing.” Gavin says, grabbing at the only possible reality. Makes sense when he thinks about, of course they like Goldie, what’s not to like about Goldie.

“Yes, wait no, we like you Gav. I mean yeah you’re good looking but we like you.” Michael says, Gavin is confused.

He imagines a time this would have gone much smoother, a time when he would have believed someone when they said what Michael is saying.

He guesses that would of been about three years ago.

“I like how funny you are. I like how shitty you are at video games. I like how fucking dumb you look in fights.” Michael says softly. “I like you.” He finishes. There’s a beat of silence.

“This is a lot Michael.” Gavin nearly whispers, throat partially closed. “Yeah, it is.” Michael says back.

Michael lays back down and motions for Gavin to follow.

Gavin stares at him, his mind going a mile a minute.

“And you hated me.”

“Oh I still fucking hate you.”

It’s 1:43.

Maybe Gavin should just go with it.

Maybe that will be okay.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fucking finally am I right people! To see me actively fight the writing process follow me @nuggetsofross on tumblr!!


	20. Who Told You (it’s not easy)

Things don't change over night. Quite literally, as Gavin wakes up in an empty bed again, his alarm blinking at him. He knows more. He knows a lot more.

He's not sure if it changes anything. Maybe it should change things but, will Gavin let it? All of these hypothetical questions at 9 in the morning are starting to get at him.

He gets up. He gets dressed. Nothing terribly unusual happens. His face is healing, his hands are still achy and cut up, but his face is almost better.

He walks to the kitchen and the house is much louder now, he peeks into the room and it looks like he's the last to wake up.

He almost hates to interrupt, seeming out of place among them. But he sees Jack at the stove and all thoughts of avoiding the kitchen leave his mind. "Oh thank God good food." Gavin says as he walks in, Jack chuckling and sending him a wave as he turns back to the stove.

"I thought you said my pancakes were 'delectable'!" Jeremy interjects, copying his british accent horribly. "I lied luv." Gavin says and sits on the far right of the table, smiling at the laughter in the room. Jeremy pouts and pokes at his food, Gavin staring at him for maybe too long.

The group talks lightly, it gives Gavin the chance to soak it in. He looks around, eyes tracing each person as he looks over them. He resists the urge to stare at Jeremy's lips. He looks at Michael and their eyes connect, sometimes Gavin wonders if Michael can read his thoughts.

They look at each other and Michael's lips twitch, his eyes trail over the rest of Gavin's face, who flushes and looks away. Gavin faintly speculates wether everyone knows about the conversation between he and Michael.

Would them knowing be easier or harder?

Gavin eats his food and lets his thoughts rest, simply listening and laughing.

Something big is in the air. Gavin only really notices it once things start to wind down, Geoff pushing his plate around and his foot jumping up and down, a huge smirk on his face.

"Okay, everyone to the heist room!" Geoff says in an excited voice, Gavin follows the others, his eyes wide in anticipation. His fingers brush against Jacks as he sits down, Gavin too awkward to mention it so he stays silent and flushed. Jack smiles out of the corner of his eye.

The crew likes to see him awkward.

"Ryan and I were out yesterday creating probably the best thing to come out of this crew." Geoff announces, Jack chuckling under his breath. Geoff pulls down the wall map.

"It's a race!" Geoff says. Gavins pulse picks up, finally something to do. "Whichever team robs their place and gets to the penthouse the fastest, wins." Ryan says, pointing at several locations on the map.

Gavin's body is buzzing with excitement and it's obvious the others feel the same. "Teams?" Jeremy asks, his smile so wide it's a sneer.

"Yup, two teams, Geoff's and mine." Ryan responds, eyes glinting. "Jeremy pick a team." Geoff says, pushing the map away. "Battle buddies!" Jeremy yells, getting up and going to Ryan's side.

"Michaels with me." Geoff says, the red head going to his side, his posture menacing. "Gavin?" Ryan asks. Gavin feels like a deer in the head lights.

"Uh." He glances at both sides and Michael motions to Ryan's team with his head, a knowing smirk on his face. He glances at Jeremy and his mouth goes dry. He clears his throat, "Ryan's." He says, walking to the self proclaimed Battle Buddies.

"And Jacks with us, you fucks are going down!" Geoff says, already way too into it. "Heist starts as soon as it's dark out, let the best team win." Ryan says.

"He means our team." Jeremy says, Michael mocking him in a high pitched voice. "You're going down bitches!" Michael yells as his team leaves the heist room.

~

Gavin is back in the bathroom, trying to decide which mask best suits his outfit. The classic ski mask or something more fun, like a clown or something.

Someone knocks on the door and Gavin opens it, holding several different masks in his hands.

"Jack!" Gavin says, his smile being pushed into a fake frown. "I mean worst enemy!" He says, fixing his last statement. "Hey asshole, just here to rebandage my leg."  Jack says, walking inside.

"You're behind enemy lines here Jack." Gavin jokes, shutting the door behind him. Jack chuckles and sits, bringing his leg up.

“Hey, uh, need any help?” He asks, gesturing to the bandage. Jack shakes his head, unwrapping the last of the bandage. “I’m good Gavin.” He says lightly. Gavin nods to himself, looking back at the mirror.

He holds each mask over his face and huffs, trying to decide between two. “Pick the party mask, it suits you.” Jack suggests.

Gavin looks down at the so called party mask, a sort of masquerade type with black and gold. He puts it on and turns to Jack, “How’s it look?” He says, glancing between him and the mirror.

“Perfect.” Jack says far too endearingly, a slight blush on Gavin’s cheeks. “I’m assuming you’re wearing the santa one?” He teases, Jack shrugging.

Before he can answer Jack attempts to stand up on his newly bandaged leg, swaying a bit. Gavin goes to catch him and grabs his arm to steady him. “Are you sure you can heist?” Gavin asks seriously, his voice quiet.

Jack waits a minute and breaths, “Yeah, I’ll be fine, Geoff-“ The bathroom door opens, Michael’s expression changes from a neutral one to surprise to fake betrayal. “Geoff! Jack’s in cahoots with the enemy!” He yells, Jack and Gavin chuckle.

“Do you even know what cahoots means?” Jack says, walking out of the bathroom to Michael. “I heard it in a movie once.” He says, walking away with Jack.

Gavin rolls his eyes and looks back at the mirror tilting his head and seeing how much of the bruising the mask conceals.

~

30 minutes until dark and Gavin can’t find Jeremy or Ryan, Geoff’s team having fucked off a bit ago. “Jeremy!” He yells, walking through the penthouse, his mask on along with all of his heisting gear.

“Rye bread!” He yells again, pausing when he hears noises in the bathroom, the doors open and so Gavin doesn’t think twice about walking up and looking in.

Gavin freezes and feels a strange feeling in his chest when he sees both Jeremy and Ryan in the bathroom.

Ryan sits on the edge of the sink, the same place Gavin was only yesterday, staying perfectly still as Jeremy meticulously dips his brush into the paint to his side. Gavin always wondered who did Ryan’s face paint, then again he always just assumed it was Ryan himself.

Neither of them notice him and he feels bad and awkward, he doesn’t feel like he should be here at all, let alone just standing and watching them. Gavin briefly wonders if he should go wait in the living room before Ryan stops him, his eyes closed and his voice relaxed.

“It’s a pre-heist ritual.” Ryan says, Jeremy jumping slightly and looking weirdly at Ryan before glancing at Gavin in the door way. “Its calming.” Ryan continues, Jeremy going back to painting Ryans face, the job nearly done.

“I’m not intruding?” Gavin asks quietly, the question on his mind since he joined a handful of months ago. “Can’t really intrude if you’re part of the Crew Gavvy.” Jeremy states, the sentence striking something in Gavin.

Gavin leans on the wall and watches Jeremy paint, a very peaceful energy fills the room.

“I like your mask.” Jeremy mutters, concentrating on Ryan. “Can’t say the same Jer. Or should I say Rimmy Tim.” He jokes, Ryan chuckling.

Jeremy turns to look at him, his gaudy cowboy hat detracting from any sense of fear his glare gives Gavin. “Purple and orange, it’s just a disaster.” Gavin finishes, Jeremy mumbling under his breath angrily.

Jeremy breaths and sets his brush down, stepping back and rolling his wrists, admiring his work.

“It’s good.” Gavin says, Jeremy humming a thanks as Ryan blinks, glancing behind him at the mirror. “Thanks Jeremy.” Ryan says, sliding off of the edge and onto his feet, placing a chaste kiss to Jeremy’s cheeks, the action leaving a streak of paint in it’s wake.

Gavin watches the action with an ache and a warm sensation flooding through his body. His doesn’t know what to call it.

“Damn it Rye.” Jeremy grumbles, washing off his cheek with a smile.

Ryan stretches his arms over his head and looks at the two in front of him.

“It’s heist time.”

~

Gavin feels his breath pick up as they park on the curb, it honestly feels like they’re in an action movie. Gavin pats the gun to his side and throws a glance at Ryan, who looks at his watch.

5 minutes until the race starts.

Jeremy is loading his gun. Ryan is fixing his mask. Gavin rolls his shoulder and hears a count down in his ears.

3..2..1..

“Go.” Ryan says, his voice already lower, he’s no longer talking like Ryan.

This is the Vagabond.

He follows the two boys out, running into the building and holding his gun up, he smiles widely, hearing the screaming and panic in person rather than over an ear piece. It’s addictive.

“Everybody on the fucking ground!” Jeremy yells, causing a mass of people to duck and fall down. Gavin nearly saunters to the cashier, pointing his gun lazily at the lads head.

“All the money in the register.” He says, his voice silky smooth. The man shakes and doesn’t respond, Gavin getting impatient, this is a race for christs sake.

He shoots next to the man’s head, nearly grazing him. But it gets him into gear. “Good boy~” he coos, watching the man shuffle money into the duffles, Gavin faintly hearing Jeremy and Ryan on crowd control.

Out of the corner of his eyes he sees someone rise, his figure stoic, the man goes to reach inside his coat and Gavin acts. Grabbing the nearest person he puts them in a lock, his gun to their head.

“Someones trying to be sneaky.” He sing songs at the man in the corner, who freezes, his face turning pale.

He walks over to the man, the woman in his grip starts to cry but he doesn’t think about it too much, she’s not the one in trouble.

Gavin holds out his hand for the gun, the man looks at him and trembles beneath Gavins crooked smile and wide eyes. Once Gavin gets the man’s gun he walks away, letting go of the woman who slides to the floor in terror.

“Mm, boys.” Gavin says, and promptly hears a few gunshots and a body slumping to the floor. A few people scream beside him.

“Oh calm down, he pulled a gun out on me!” Gavin says, laughing to himself. God being Goldie is fun. “Anyway, the money?” The cashier doesn’t even look at Gavin, he simply pushes all of the bags to him in a frenzy.

Just in time.

Gavin whips his head to the street as he hears sirens and faintly sees the familiar lights. They’re closer than he thought.

A stray bullet makes its way into the building.

“You’ve all done a great job.” Jeremy says, in some weird deep voice that maybe has an accent as he grabs a few of the bags, running to the van.

“Well except for him.” Ryan says, his voice leaving shivers down Gavins spine as he forgets just how creepy the Vagabond is supposed to be. Gavin chuckles and gestures to the dead guy, “Dumb bloke.” He says, now hearing the sirens a lot more clear he bends down and grabs a bunch of the bags with Ryan, the two running to the van.

Gavin trips trying to dodge a bullet, Ryan hoisting him up as the two run next to each other. Jeremy’s already in the van.

Ryan opens the door, ignoring the barrage of shots and throws in the bags, Gavin doing the same. Taking a peek around the van Gavin narrowly avoids a ricocheted bullet. Someone grabs his wrist and he is tossed into the back of the van, Ryan nearly landing on top of him as he closes the door.

Jeremy reverses and takes a hard right, slamming on the gas. Ryan is thrown to his left and that just so happens to be directly on top of Gavin.

The two stare at each other, the loud maniacal laughter of Jeremy and the van itself feel muffled. Ryan is accidentally straddling Gavin, both of his hands on either side of Gavin’s head as he tried to catch himself.

Gavin has lost all sense of logic, the only thing he can focus on is his heart beating wildly out of his chest, he assumes he looks like a mess. He can’t really see what Ryan looks like, the damn mask covering everything.

He raises his hand and touches the edge of Ryan’s mask, all thought suddenly slamming into him again, causing him to freeze. Ryan says and does nothing, Gavin can’t decide what to do, he’s stuck.

Somehow sensing Gavins predicament, Ryan moves a hand to Gavin’s own, on the edge of his mask. It’s not much, but it means more than anything Ryan could have said.

Gavin lets out a broken breath and decides to stop worrying, at least in this moment.

He slips his fingers under Ryan’s mask, taking it off in a fluid motion. Ryan is breathing heavily, either from the heist or because of the man underneath him. Gavin keeps his fingers on the edge of Ryan’s jaw, lightly touching him.

Ryan moves his hand and Gavin can feel his fingers linger on the edge of Gavin’s mask. This means more than he gave it credit for.

Gavin almost stops breathing but lets Ryan take off his mask, almost painfully slow.

They stare at each other, slightly moving due to Jeremy’s erratic driving.

Ryan won’t stop staring into Gavin’s eyes, his breathing still heavy, his fingers twitch on the side of Gavin’s head but they don’t touch him.

It hits Gavin that Ryan’s waiting for him to make the first move, he almost black outs from worry at that very second but he just lets himself look into Ryan’s blue eyes.

The same blue eyes who carried him like he was nothing out of that hell.

Gavin leans up and places a hand on the back of Ryan’s head, pulling him down. Thier lips meet in the back of a van full of stolen money.

Gavin can feel his entire body flush against Ryans, his lips calloused like Jeremys but his face smoother. Gavin hasn’t kissed anyone in a long time, if you don’t count Jeremy, and now he realizes what he was missing for so long.

Gavin feels Ryan’s hand slide to his back and he basically melts into the touch. They sit up, lips still locked, Ryan tastes like Diet Coke and paint and copper.

The van stops suddenly and they break apart, eyes blown and lips slightly bruised.

“Fuck! They beat us.” Jeremy says, having no knowledge of the past few minutes that went on behind him.

It makes Gavin feel guilty, he doesn’t know why, and he slides away from Ryan a tad, clearing his throat. Gavin can’t take his eyes off of Ryan.

“Probably cheated.” Ryan says to Jeremy, never talking his eyes off of Gavin, his voice slightly breaks and it makes Gavin flush.

“Yeah you’re probably ri-“ Jeremy turns around and glances between the two if them, “What’d I miss?” He says, noticing something is up.

“We just uh had a mishap back here.” Ryan says, noticing Gavin does not want to talk about what just happened, at least not right now, he needs time.

He always seems to need time.

Jeremy nods and doesn’t press the issue, getting out of the van. Gavin lets out a breath he was holding and Ryan turns to him, moving closer, Gavin tenses as Ryan brings a hand up.

He’s holding a piece of cloth. “You’ve got a little...face paint on you.” Ryan mumbles, face burning. Gavin turns to him and allows Ryan to clean it off, he takes a few seconds too long tracing Gavin’s lips with the cloth.

Gavin’s a jumble full of thoughts and lust and adrenaline.

Ryan opens the door behind him and holds it for Gavin who gratefully goes through it, grabbing an arm full of bags. The fact that he’s holding probably a few thousand dollars just in his arms does less for him than looking back and watching Ryan’s gaze linger on him as he walks to the penthouse.

Geoff is ecstatic, whooping and cheering around the house, his own bags of money strewn around the living room.

“You fucks, we started earlier, the cops all went to us!” Jeremy says, outraged. “That was my plan all along!” Geoff shouts back, Gavin glances at Jack, he’s guessing that’s what Jack was going to tell him in the bathroom. It’s a smart tactic.

“It’s okay Lil J, I bet we had more fun.” Gavin says, dumping the bags of money next to him. “Yeah we did.” Ryan mumbles, Gavin’s eyes widening and his face turning pinkish. Gavin slyly hits Ryan lightly causing a light chuckle from the man.

He doesn’t know what they are or what this is but it feels good.

They stay up for hours, counting money and watching the news.

“Oh, oh, there I am Michael!” Gavin says, grabbing the mans arm and tugging at it. The news is showing the video from inside the building, the security cameras getting everything, the news station blurring most things out.

“Fuck Gavin.” Michael says, staring at the television as it shows him turn a 180 and grab the woman from the floor, gun to her head. “Some prick wanted to be a hero.” Gavin comments, the screen changing to one video of Jeremy looking around the building, gaze settling over the camera.

Jeremy, or Rimmy Tim as he is so fond of calling himself in heists, smirks at the camera and gives a little wave with his gun. “Wow, intimidating.” Michael comments, Jeremy attempting to slap him.

The news switches to Geoff’s heist, the premise is nearly the same but it’s far more controlled, in out, it’s quick. He wonders if it’s because both Jack and Geoff where working together, maybe they keep this group controlled.

Michael sure as hell doesn’t.

Gavin’s so tired he leans against the sofa, his head accidentally hitting Geoff leg. Gavin goes to apologize but he’s met with such a surprise he nearly collapses into the side of the sofa.

Geoff cards his fingers through Gavin’s hair, the younger man nearly falling asleep. “You falling asleep Gavver?” Geoff whispers, everyone around him talking in normal tones.

“No.” He says, letting his hair be played with, watching the news go over whoever that guy was the Jeremy or Ryan shot. Undercover cop apparently.

“Gavin was a fucking monster out there.” Jeremy comments, Gavins lips curling up. “I’m good at what I do.” Gavin says, shrugging.

“Really good.” Ryan mutters, Jeremy hearing him and nodding in agreement, facing the television.

It’s nearly midnight before everyone starts to pack up and head to bed. Gavin moving after Geoff finally stops playing with his hair, followed by an internal frown from Gavin.

Gavin gets into his room and can feel his throat tighten. He thinks about the possibility of going back out to sleep on the couch with the television on but before he can the door opens.

It’s Michael, it’s always Michael.

“Figured since it’s already late I’d just come in now.” Michael says softly, he’s not wearing a shirt and it distracts Gavin a tad bit. “Thank you.” He says, collapsing on the bed, it’s been a long day.

Michael chuckles and lays next to him, both of them too hyped up to fall asleep.

A few minutes pass.

“I kissed Ryan.” Gavin says quickly, like he’s afraid of what Michael will think, what he’ll say. “What?” Michael says, he sounds more confused than anything. “I kissed Ryan.” Gavin repeats, this time much slower, like he’s absorbing it as well.

Michael pauses, “Well good for you dude.” He says, Gavin balking, “What about Jer-“ Michael heaves out a sigh, “Dude, he understands, he’s been fucking dating me and three other guys for a bit now.” Michael says, tossing an arm over his eyes.

“I can’t just go around kissing people to see if I like them.” Gavin says, his tone sharp as if reprimanding himself. “Why not?” Michael asks, “Because that’s-it’s a bit whoreish innit?” Gavin asks, glancing at Michael for back up.

“You sound like a fucking idiot.” Michael mutters, Gavin groans and sits up, causing Michael to sigh. “Michael, I don’t know what to do.” He says softly.

“And you think I do?” Michael says, Gavin running a hand down his face. “I think you’re thinking about it too much.” Michael says, lightly ghosting his fingers over Gavin’s hand.

“You guys are people I shouldn’t be just doing whatever.” Gavin says, starting to get a bit worked up. “Did it feel good when you kissed Ryan.” Michael asks, grabbing Gavin’s hand. Gavin doesn’t want to answer, he knows how it felt, it felt like heaven, it felt so good he wanted to do it forever. But he can’t.

“Did it feel good when Jeremy kissed you.” Michael asks, sitting up, he’s very close to Gavin. Any words that Gavin might have said dies on his lips as Michael stares at him through the dark.

Jeremy. The mans lips on his make him physically unable to think. He needs more of that.

“Does it feel good...” Michael says quietly, and leans forward, catching Gavin’s lips with his own. Gavin’s brain can’t catch up with the thought of him being kissed twice in one day, he’s not the rest of him can either. Michael is heated, passionate, grabbing the back of Gavins head and bringing him closer.

Gavin moans into the kiss and Michael breaks it, breath hot across Gavin’s lips. “Does it feel good when I kiss you?” He asks. The room is quiet save for each others heavy breathing.

Michaels waiting for an answer.

“Yes.” Gavin whispers.

“They I don’t see the problem Gavin.” Michael growls, letting go of Gavin’s hands.

“It’s not that easy-“ Gavin starts, “Who says?!” Michael says, anger seeping in. “Who says it’s not just that easy, who told you you can’t enjoy things?” He asks, sounding angry, but it’s not at Gavin, or, he’s pretty sure. Maybe it’s at the world, maybe it’s at the people in Gavin’s past he hasn’t talked about.

Maybe it is Gavin.

“It’s dangerous.” Gavin says, “Everything’s dangerous, you where in a damn police chase today!” Michael says, he feels like he’s explaining something to a fucking toddler. “I’m not afraid of the police.” Gavin says, scoffing at the premise.

“Then what, and don’t tell me about any rejection issue bullshit.” Michael says, probably a bit sharper than he means too, but Gavin needs it.

“I’m afraid...I’m afraid of loosing all of this, I’m afraid I’ll care too much when it all goes away.” Gavin says softly, admitting to something he usually would have died rather than admit.

Michael looses all of his anger. A miracle on his part.

No one knows what to say. Neither of them are good at feelings. So Michael does maybe the only thing he can do right now.

He hugs Gavin, his head hiding in the crook of his neck. Michael can feel Gavin’s short, raspy breaths and Gavin can feel Michaels strong arms holding him.

All of the words are sucked out of him, the two lay down.

Later is for action.

Tonight is for sleep.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aye! When did I start updating fast? Follow me @nuggetsofross to find some behind the scenes of how I write these chapters!


	21. Happy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Mentions and scenes of drug and alcohol use/abuse*

Intimacy is not a thing Gavin ever thought, or ever said out loud, that he'd crave. It's probably because he's forgotten what it's like, real intimacy, not one night stands or people with wandering hands at the bar.

It doesn't make him feel sad, he just feels an ache in his chest when he senses Michael sit up in bed.

Gavin doesn't move, Michael absently stretching and yawning. Is it weird to pretend to still be asleep just to keep a moment from going away.

He's touched on the shoulder and jumps, turning and staring up at Michael who gives him a small smirk. "It's like noon, time to get our lazy asses up." Michael says, Gavin nodding slowly, trying not to stare as Michael gets up from the bed, his chest bare.

When Michael turns from him Gavin gazes at his back, scars littering it. He gets a pang in his chest. What stories has he missed out on. What life changing events has Michael gone through. He's never wanted to learn more about someone than right now. It hits him how little he knows about the Crew, how little they know about him.

It's his fault, really, he made himself unapproachable and put on this fake identity. It's what he's good at. What he will continue to be good at. It’s a talent not a gift.

Snapping his gaze away Gavin gets up as well, just as Michael heads to the door and opens it. He doesn't say anything as he leaves but he does hesitate.

Gavin turns as the door is shut and goes to his bathroom, grabbing clothes, any clothes, he doesn't care what he wears right now. He looks at himself in the mirror and presses his lips into a thin line. Repeating the events of last night in his head he wonders if he'll regret it at all, he almost does now.

He stares into his own eyes, it makes him uncomfortable. Thinking about last night makes him hollow.

Gavin can almost see that in his eyes too.

Shaking his head he puts on his clothes, walking out and to the living room where he hears Jeremy's unmistakable voice. "I'm getting drunk as fuck!" He yells.

Gavin not only assumes the worst but he also hopes for the worst because a drunk Jeremy is a fun Jeremy.

"This is an important meeting with an important guy, you are not getting drunk." Geoff says lowly, his voice lacking any seriousness. "An important meeting in a club?" Ryan asks.

Now is Gavin's cue, he turns the corner and leans in the doorway. "Did I hear club?" He asks, eyes turning towards him. “We have to go meet a guy and the meeting just so happens to be in a club.” Geoff says, his arms crossed.

“Can’t be a very serious meeting.” Gavin speculates, tilting his head and seeing Michael walk through the hallway to the living room. “It’s a very serious meeting and you fuckers are not going to ruin it.” Geoff says, Jack shaking his head behind him.

“I’m getting drunk as fuck.” Jeremy repeats quietly, looking down fiercely at the carpet. Geoff sighs but doesn’t correct him, “Are you talking with them by yourself?” Gavin asks, pushing off the door frame as Michael enters it.

“Yeah, he’s a...business partner. I know him well enough to do it myself, you are all coming for show.” Geoff says, Gavin raising an eyebrow. A business partner?

“That being said I do want you ready Gavin, just in case I need you.” Geoff says, Gavin nodding. “Can do.”

“So, we should get ready?” Ryan asks from his seat on the couch, looking like he would rather sit there all day than get ready. “We don’t leave for a few hours.” Jack responds, Gavin calculating in his head.

“It’s going to take me a few hours.” Gavin mutters, running a hand through his hair as he turns around and heads back to his room.

“Gavin you hungry?” Jeremy asks, calling from the other end of the room. “Later.” Gavin says, waving him off with his hand as he goes over the list created in his head.

This is going to be a process.

~

It’s been a while since Gavin’s dressed up quite like this, he thinks to himself while staring in the mirror, turning slightly to look himself up and down, he’s looking good, but he’s not done.

He plops down on the floor and grabs a box under his bed, his pants woefully uncomfortable but they look bloody damn good. He positions himself and grabs the brush from the box, a small knock echos through the room.

“Come in.” Gavin says, bringing the bush to his face. Through the mirror Gavin’s eyes connect with Jacks, he smiles and looks back at himself in the mirror. “I come with food.” Jack says, waling into the room and placing a plate by Gavin’s crossed legs.

“Is this how the Golden Boy is made.” Jack asks teasingly, watching Gavin concentrate on his face, his wrist flicking and his fingers moving with what seems to be experience.

“Yup, front row seat Jack, better feel damn privileged.” Gavin says, glancing at the plate by his legs, it’s all finger food, thank god, Gavin can’t afford to get a stain now.

There’s a few moments of comfortable silence.

“You do this every time?” Jack asks, Gavin chuckles, tilting his head. “Use to, not all jobs require it anymore though.” Gavin answers.

“Use to.” Jack repeats softly, “I worked in clubs and raves. I nicked expensive jewelry off people, dealt drugs, committed a few murders here and there.” Gavin says, finishing up his eyes. “If you’re broke and don’t have any skills besides your looks, you have to make it work somehow.” Gavin says as if he needs to justify something.

“It seemed to work out well for you.” Jack says, his eyes soft. “Yeah.” Gavin says flatly, finishing his make up.

It worked out just fine.

~

“Holy fuck Gav.” Gavin turns around in the hallway, seeing both Ryan and Geoff on the other side, dressed for the club.

Geoff unabashedly looks Gavin up and down, while Ryan keeps his eyes on Gavin’s face, eyebrow raising.

“You look great.” Ryan says, his voice catching and Gavin chuckling. Ryan clears his throat, jaw clenched. “Sometimes I forget why they call you Goldie. Then I see this.” Geoff says, Gavin giving him a sly smile. “Never forget who you brought on.” He says, winking at him and walking through the hallway to the living room.

Gavin can feel them all looking at him, he likes it.

“You ready lads?” He asks, a lazy smile on his lips, the lights glinting off of him.

~

They all step out of the car, a sight to behold he’s sure. Gavin saunters over to Geoff who looks around the street, the city dark and the club in front glowing.

In bright neon lights reads ‘Peri’ the font something fancy. Jeremy walks to his side, the only one of the crew who even remotely came close to dressing up like Gavin, opting for a more Rimmy Tim style of clothes, bright purples and oranges that somehow look better in a club setting.

“Let me take care of the bouncer.” Geoff mumbles to Gavin, walking forward. Gavin trails after him, along with the rest of the crew, all of them gaining looks from everyone.

Gavin sees the bouncer and glances at Geoff, smirking as he starts to talk, “Ramsey.” Geoff says to the bouncer who looks up at him, but then turns towards Gavin.

“Goldie!” He says, laughing heartily and offering him his hand, which Gavin gratefully takes, the handshake awkward only to Gavin. “Kevin, long time no see.” He purrs, the man laughing again.

Kevin turns back to the others, a look of recognition dawning on him. “You’re the..” he trails off, “The Fakes.” Geoff finishes, his face stoic.

“Um, come right through.” Kevin says hurriedly, moving out of the way quickly, Geoff nodding at him and walking in, Gavin giving him a small wave then following after.

“You know him?” Geoff says once they’re inside, the club faintly familiar to him. “He was a bouncer at an old gaff I visited.” Gavin says nonchalantly.

“Who else do you know here.” Michael asks, not really looking for an answer, Gavin shrugs then looks through the faint fog in the giant crowded room, neon lights on every corner making it hard to distinguish features. “The girl at the bar is named Kelli, with an I.” Gavin says, Michael’s eyes bugging out slightly, head whipping to the bar.

“I’m pulling your leg boi, I don’t know, I imagine most of these people know me though.” He says, Geoff leading them all to an empty table, everyone else around them looks to be high profile.

Geoff must have picked this spot on purpose.

“When is he getting here?” Ryan asks, looking to be the most uncomfortable here. The club scene really isn’t for him. The bright green neon lights make him look incredible though.

“Right now.” Geoff says and looks straight ahead, a smile plastered on his face, “No one speak, he works with some very powerful people.” He says quietly, the loud music almost drowning him out.

Gavin follows Geoff’s gaze and sees a smaller kind of grumpy man walking towards them. Gavin smacks a smile on on his face as the man sits at their table with a huff and let’s Geoff do all of the talking.

“Gus, nice to see you buddy.” Geoff says, the man nodding at him and managing a short smile. “You too Geoff.” Gus says, grabbing a drink from one of the people walking around.

“Fucking hate these places.” Gus says, his tone dropping. “You picked it.” Geoff says, his hand lightly tapping the table. “I know, this place is only good for one thing, meetings and free drinks.” Gus says, downing his drink to make a point.

“Anyway, why I’m here.” Gus says, wiping at his mouth. “I heard you have the third key?” Gus asks.

Geoff nods, “Well, the Roosters are tied up right now with stuff back home along with this leftover Corps business and we believe your gang is good enough to take the rest out.” Gus says, calling over another drink.

“Thanks for the confidence.” Geoff says, voice neutral. “While we can’t help you out directly because of reasons I’m not allowed to say we do have info for you.” Gus says, stirring his drink.

“What kind of information.” Geoff asks, Gus holding up a hand and taking a drink. “First we need something from you.” Gus says, Geoff’s jaw clenching slightly.

“Okay, what do you need.” Geoff says, Gus finishes his second drink and looks at the rest of the table for the first time. “I’m going to need first names of these two.” Gus says, gesturing at Ryan and Jeremy.

Geoff stiffens and glances at both Jeremy and Ryan, Jeremy shrugs and nods his head at Geoff, giving him permission. Ryan takes a crew more seconds but nods.

“He’s Jeremy and that’s Ryan.” Geoff says flatly, already giving out more than he wanted to. Gus nods and leans back before making eye contact with Gavin, he sits up quickly. “He’s new.” Gus states, Gavin looking at him blankly. How much does Gus know about him.

“Yeah, he joined a few months ago he’s-“ Geoff is interrupted, “Golden Boy, I know, the Roosters tried to get in contact with him a few years ago.” Gavin furrows his brow, “You did?” He asks, the conversation not bringing back any memories.

“Burnie talked with you a few times, but you turned him down each time.” Gus says, his eyes staring at Gavin hard. “Burnie...Oh yeah, suppose I did.” Gavin says, shrugging. He faintly remembers them, he had only been in town for about a year when it happened and wasn’t interested in working with let alone joining a crew.

Gus stares at him and then Geoff with a look of respect and a faint flicker of jealousy. “This doesn’t change anything right.” Geoff says, narrowing his eyes.

Gus shakes his head, calling over another drink, Gavin is starting to think this man has a problem. “It doesn’t change anything, you’ve told us what we wanted to know, we’ll keep our side of the agreement.” Gus says, digging into his pocket and grabbing out something, handing it to Geoff before Gavin can see it.

“I wouldn’t look at that here, wait till you get somewhere safe.” Gus says, finishing his third drink and standing up, “Nice to meet all of you. Geoff, don’t fuck this up.” Gus says, and turns to make his leave.

The booming music fills the silence for them. “Now you can drink Jeremy.” Geoff says, the short man pumping his fists into the air and rushing out of his seat and to the bar.

“Everyone can go do whatever, think of this as a reward for the heists yesterday.” Geoff says, Gavin smirking and getting up from the table, everyone but Jack and Geoff leaving and heading to the bar.

“Ryan you don’t even drink.” Michael says, looking suspiciously at him. “Those two wanted to talk, alone, I’ll just get a coke or something.” He says, taking a seat at the bar.

Gavin opens his mouth to say something but hears someone yell, “Free!” Gavin whips his head, his breath nearly stopping, his face breaks out into a smile and he nearly falls over as someone jumps into him.

The two laugh loudly, nearly falling over. “Turney God it’s been forever.” He says, hugging her tightly. “Gavin you bitch you’ve been here the entire time!” She says outrages, lightly hitting his chest.

Gavin laughs louder than he has in a while, shaking his head at her, letting her go and looking down at her. “I thought it would be weird to call you.” Gavin explains, rubbing the back of his neck.

“You idiot.” She says, hitting him lightly again. Gavin is so happy to see her he misses the looks from the people next to him, Michael clears his throat and Gavin jumps, looking back at them.

“Oh, uh.” Gavin doesn’t know where to start, it’s a long story between Turney and him. One he can’t explain all of in one night.

“Are you...Doll Face.” Jeremy asks, eyes wide and drink hanging loosely between his fingers. “The one and only.” She says, winking at Jeremy.

“I’m Meg.” She says, clearing up some name confusion for the other two. “How do you know Gavin?” Ryan asks, swirling his glass of water. What a nerd.

“I trained him for a while, taught the idiot everything he knows about being the Golden Boy.” Meg says, nudging Gavin as she says Golden Boy, a name she always thoroughly made fun of.

“You called him Free?” Michael asks, taking a swig out of his drink. “It’s my last name, also why I call her Turney.” Gavin says, Michael nodding, looking at Meg suspiciously, not even trying to hide it.

“Excuse me boys but can I steal Gav from you for a second.” Meg asks, threading her arm around his. “It’s fine, we’re not actually doing anything right now.” Jeremy says, his eyes still full of fascination as he looks at Meg. It reminds Gavin of how Jeremy looked at him when they first met.

“Great.” Meg says, tugging Gavin off to the side, moving to a more empty part of the club.

“What the fuck! Who are these people? You’re finally with a crew?!” Meg says the first chance she gets, Gavin can’t help but laugh as he takes Meg in. It really has been a long time.

“They’re the Fakes and yeah, I joined them.” Gavin says, sitting down as Meg pulls him into a two seated table. “I’ve heard about them, dangerous bunch, you okay with them Gav.” She asks, voice turning lower as she gets more personal.

“They’re good, better than I could have hoped.” Gavin says, smiling at her as she studies his expression. She sits back, satisfied with what she finds. “Which one are you fucking?”

Gavin nearly chokes on air.

“What?!” He says, making his signature squawking noises. “Oh I just-maybe I was reading the mood wrong.” Meg backs up, cheeks turning red in embarrassment. “What mood?” Gavin asks, getting his breath back.

“You know I taught you to watch out for these things, glares, clenched fists, they looked almost jealous.” Meg says, wiggling her eyebrows. Gavin looks down, bringing a hand to his neck.

“So which one, you don’t even have to be doing them, just tell me.” Meg says, waiting for an answer. “Uh, would you freak out if I said all three of them, and then some.” Gavin says quickly, shrinking back when Meg’s eyes widen comically, her mouth dropping open.

“You’re fuc-“ Gavin immediately interrupts her, “No! I just sort of kissed a few of them, and then the rest I know like me and it’s just...it’s just a lot.” Gavin finishes, his shoulders dropping.

“You’re not freaked out? You, Gavin Free, the same who ran away when I said I loved him as a friend.” Meg says, sounding skeptical.

“I was at first.” Gavin starts, “But now it’s nice I guess, I don’t know Meg, I don’t even know if I trust them.” Gavin lays his head on the table, making sure not to mess up his make up while doing it.

“It’s okay Gavvers you were always a flakey kind of guy.” Meg says, teasing him. “That is not helping Turney.” He mumbles, Meg tuts and pats him on the back. “You know what you need, a distraction, some fun. Like old times.” Meg says, Gavin raising his head and smirking.

“That is the best idea you’ve come up with.”

Meg signals for some drinks and they start their night, Gavin nearly forgetting about his crew. He tells himself it’s okay, he needs a night off.

He’s quite a bit tipsy when Meg drags him over to the dance floor, it nearly separates when everyone sees the pair. The loud, sparkling, golden boy whose looks bring everyones eyes and the beautiful, blood red doll face who keeps their eyes.

The dance floor is theirs like the many times before.

Gavin relishes and flourishes in the looks given to him and Meg, they do what they’ve always done, attract attention. Women and men alike buy them both drinks, Meg refusing after a time while Gavin continues until he is lost in the crowd stumbling.

He can’t see Meg but he can see a tipsy Jeremy and a coke drinking Ryan. He plops next to Jeremy, the younger one finding that hilarious causing Gavin to laugh with him and they collapse together in a laughing mess while Ryan looks on with a raised eyebrow.

“Lil J, come dance with me.” Gavin slurs, grabbing clumsily at his arm, reveling for a moment the muscle there. “Gavin maybe you should-“ Ryan attempts to calm him down but Gavin simply giggles and gives up on Jeremy dancing with him, seeing Michael and going after him.

“Micool~” Gavin purrs, grabbing the man and pulling him to the dance floor, he looks mildly amused and mildly annoyed. “Dance with me.” Gavin whispers into his ear, dancing closely to Michael on the crowded dance floor.

“Gavin how drunk are you?” Michael mutters, his voice abnormally deep and he doesn’t seem to know where to put his hands. Gavin grabs them and puts them on his hips, smirking at Michael through his drunken daze.

“Just have fun Micool boi.” He says, giggling and dancing, or what Michael assumes is dancing, with Michaels hands on his hips. “Gavin maybe you should go sit down.” Michael says, a hitch in his breath.

“Micool, this is a club.” He says and stops dancing, looking at him while pouting, he attempts to grab Michaels hand but he pulls his hand away, going to grab Gavin’s arm.

Gavin walks backwards into the crowd, nearly falling over. Some random guy catches him and attempts to talk to him but Gavin ignores him, breaking out of his grasp and heading to the corner of the room to find someone fun.

“Goldie.” Says a voice to his right, he turns and smiles, if someone knows his name it’s probably someone fun, someone distracting.

He doesn’t recognize the man at all.

However, he still walks over to him and sits across from him. “Do I know you?” Gavin asks, searching the mans face. “Not yet.” The man says cryptically.

Interesting.

“How do you know me?” He asks, his vision slightly doubling as the man moves in his seat. “I’ve heard a lot about you. In fact, I’m hoping to learn more soon.” He says, smiling freely at him.

Gavin’s stomach twists but his foggy mind ignores it.

“Is that supposed to be a threat or something.” Gavin says uninterested, lolling his head back and forth to the music.

“Maybe it is.” The man says, staring at him for a second, Gavin not responding. “I’ll let you know a secret Goldie.” He says, getting up and getting closer to Gavin who moves away slightly.

“The bars name, Peri? It’s short for Periclum.” He says, Gavin scooting away but the man just scoots closer. “So?” He asks, his voice cold.

“It’s latin for danger.” He says, getting up and smirking at Gavin. “I would take that word very literally in the next few weeks.” He says, turning around and leaving into the dense crowd.

Gavin now feels woefully sober as he stares at the dense crowd.

Gavin gets up and almost desperately moves to the darker side of the club, the louder and less dense side of it.

He sees a person he is very familiar with, “Haley.” He grunts, the girl turning towards him, her eyes widening and then her smirk growing. “The usual G?” She asks, turning towards the table in front of her, filled with drugs and pipes and needles, looking at them almost makes Gavin sick.

“Yeah.” He squeezes out, his pulse picking up and his chest tightening. “Here you go, on the house for my favorite customer.” She says, handing him a small bag of colorful tablets.

“Thanks Haley.” He says, walking away and popping a few, his gag reflex still refusing even after all this time so he grabs a drink and downs it.

It takes only about ten minutes for things to start feeling better, he’s laughing again, looking for Geoff or Ryan or anyone. He really misses them, he hasn’t seen them in hours.

His head is floaty. His body is light. He feels better than he ever has.

He spies Ryan, sitting with some soda in his cup, swirling it absently, sitting next to him is a buzzed Jack. Both of them are talking lightly.

“Hello boys.” Comes his words, he stumbles to the table and sits next to Ryan, their thighs touching. “Jesus christ.” Jack mutters, frowning at Gavin as he giggles in a much higher pitch than usual.

“What have you been drinking?” Ryan asks, attempting to peel Gavin off of him to get a look. Gavin just giggles and looks up at him, his chin on the mans shoulder.

“Gavin your eyes...” Ryan trails off and puts his coke down, turning to Gavin and staring into his eyes. “Beautiful aren’t they.” He says nearly incoherently, giggling the entire time.

“What did you take?” Ryan asks, his tone serious. “Lighten up Rye bread.” Gavin says, bypassing the question and instead moving closer to him.

“Gavin answer the question.” Ryan repeats, “What’s wrong?” Jack asks, putting his own drink down. “His pupils are blown and his eyes are shaking.” Ryan says, Gavin giggling. “They’re dancing Ryan, they’re so happy they’re dancing!” Gavin squeals, busting into giggles again.

“Hold him, I’ll be back.” Ryan says to Jack, pushing Gavin over to Jack. “Jack~ you’re so warm.” He says, climbing into Jacks side.

“Gavin, what did you take?” Jack repeats, Gavin huffing loudly. “Some bevs, obviously it’s a damn club, and then some happy pills.” Gavin says, smiling up at Jack and bringing his hand up, poking Jacks nose.

“What were the pills actually named.” Jack asks, “Happy!” Gavin cries, smiling even wider. “Do you have any more?” Jack asks, looking more and more worried as Gavins behavior progresses. “That sounds like a trap.” Gavin says lowly, snickering.

“Gavin, look at me.” Another voice says, he turns his head and sees Meg. “Turney you look beautiful.” Gavin says, moving towards her, she frowns and stares into his eyes before her face relaxes and she chuckles.

“It’s okay he does this a lot.” Meg says, waving away Jack and Ryans surprised expressions. “What do you mean it’s okay?” Ryan says lowly, his hands clenched.

“He’s just having a fun time.” Meg says, Gavin nodding along. “We don’t even know what he took.” Jack nearly growls. “Gavin what’d you take?” Meg says, leaning down and stumbling a tiny bit.

“Took some bloody happy.” Gavin says, tired of answering the same question over and over. “Idiot means ecstasy.” Meg clarifies, Jack and Ryan’s apprehension growing.

They start talking to each other but Gavin ignores them, turning to Meg, “See you soon?” He asks, smiling widely at her. “I would give you my number but I think you can figure it out.” She says, giving him a friendly peck on the cheek and leaving.

Gavin is semi unaware of what happens next as time moves quickly and the bright neon lights blur together. He is happy for no reason, and shows it quite loudly when he sees Geoff, Michael and Jeremy’s worried looks.

“You look so good Jer.” He slurs as he is passed off to the younger man, the mixture of alcohol and happy making his legs weak. “You’re a fucking wreck Gavin.” He says, his eyes hardening.

“But it feels so good Jeremy, like I’m flying.” He says, his body hot next to Jeremys.

He thinks he goes outside at one point, the sudden temperature change making him gag then laugh as wind flows through his hair.

He gets in the car and snuggles next to Jack who sits in the back, watching over him. “I think you over did it.” Jack whispers to him. “I do that sometimes.” Gavin giggles.

He thinks he remembers seeing the penthouse.

He doesn’t remember passing out.

~

The first thing Gavin realizes is that he is laying face first in his bed, alone.

His eyes don’t become accustom to the darkness and it scares him. Bile rises in his throat and he flings himself out of bed, nearly crawling to the toilet to throw up. After he does so he sits on the tile floor for a while.

His head is pounding.

His eyes are dry.

His throat is dry.

He stands up and stumbles back to his bed, his limbs filled with sudden exhaustion as everything leaves him. Searching in his pockets leaves him empty handed.

Staring into the darkness makes him feel worse, the silence suffocating him.

He debates staying in bed but his brain won’t allow it.

Standing up his legs nearly buckle, he walks to his door and pushes it open lightly. He counts the doors, his brain scrambling them in his head and he hopefully opens the second one.

“Michael.” He says quietly, his voice hoarse and scratchy.

“Gavin?” A tired and worried Geoff, not Michael, asks. “This isn’t Michael’s room.” Gavin says out loud, holding on to the door frame, afraid his legs will give out if he goes back into the hallway.

“What’s wrong?” Geoff says, quickly getting out of bed and going to Gavin. “Can’t sleep.” He says, the moment full of deja vu.

Geoff lightly grabs his arm, the movement making Gavin lurch to him, Geoff half catching him.

  
Geoff sets him on his bed and Gavin lays down, turning to Geoff whose face he can’t quite make out.

“You scared us there Gav.” Geoff mutters, hand going to Gavins hair, who nearly purrs in delight as Geoff does so.

“Sorry, I suppose it’s not really normal to you blokes.” Gavin mumbles, yawning.

“Meg knows, she understands, you just gotta take it and hope it wasn’t too much then ride it out.” Gavin whispers, quickly falling asleep as Geoff plays with his hair.

“Fuck Gavin.” Geoff says softly, almost sounding sad. “Don’t worry, I don’t have anymore, bloody lost it on the way here.” Gavin mutters, curling closer to him.

“Besides it’s not like I was doing meth.” He says, voicing his thoughts on the issue. “Was tonight anything like you used to do, before we met?” Geoff asks.

“Meg and I would stay up days at places like that, can’t remember most of it really.” Gavin says, his breath evening out.

“No more drugs since then though?” Geoff asks.

“Not since about a month ago.”

“You’ve been here for almost six.”

“Yeah.”

...

“We’ll talk about this in the morning.”

Gavin doesn’t think they will, Michael was like this too, and nothing really happened. He doesn’t think anything will change. Nothing has changed for years.

He’s here, high as a kite, in some other guys bed just like before.

Things don’t change.

At least not for Gavin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well that was depressing :,D for more follow my tumblr @nuggetsofross


	22. Riddles and Stories

It hits Gavin like a train, nearly as soon as he opens his eyes. He groans, and covers his head, the pressure not alleviating any pain. Hangovers after a night like lasts were and are always the worse.

They don't hurt more than regular ones, not physically at least, they just leave an ache. An ache in his chest which logically shouldn't be hurting in the first place but none of this is really logical is it.

He knows where he is, a tiny miracle. Geoff's room is cozier than he expected, filled with bookshelves and knick knacks, in the corner is a worn arm chair and lamp. Books are everywhere, the floor, the shelves, the chair, it's strangely comforting.

However, there is no Geoff. No Geoff but a folded up jumper and sweatpants do sit next to him on the bed. The pants are his, the jumper is not. He could take a wild guess as to whose it is but he doesn't. He wants to ignore it, but quickly realizes he can't as he is slowly becoming more and more uncomfortable in bed wearing these clothes.

Gavin slips out of bed, grabbing the clothes without a glance. Walking into Geoff's personal bathroom feels wrong, but he's not willing to leave the room yet. Geoff's bathroom is a great deal simpler than Gavin's, just basic things, nothing to out of the ordinary, of course Gavin's sure most of his things cost more than all of Geoff's things.

It's just a fact, not something he holds on to.

Looking at his reflection makes his throat tighten. His make up is ruined and smudged, gold everywhere, eyeliner smeared. He looks terrible. He would joke that it's humbling but he can't bring himself to.

He grabs a towel and scrubs and scrubs and scrubs until his face is raw and then he feels better. He strips as fast as he can, the sweatpants feeling familiar and the jumper feels...well it doesn't feel like his.

Gavin knows that he'll have to face everyone, honestly he's been waiting for it, but he's not ready. Rather, he is as ready as he will ever be.

Maybe it won't matter. Maybe last night won't change anything. Maybe he won't have to deal with anything.

One way to find out.

Gavin walks through the bathroom and goes to Geoff's door, opening it in a thirty second bout of courage. He hears talking, low talking, the kind of talking people do when they don't want you to hear what they're saying. Gavin's stomach twists.

Fighting between listening and interrupting Gavin let's his impulsiveness chose for him. He walks into the room without thinking and every sound stops.

Gavin's eyes flit between them all, his face blank, their faces blank as well, but they're hiding something. "Good morning Gavin." Jack says first, because of course Jack does.

"It's noon." Gavin says, his throat scratchy. He's not trying to be difficult, or maybe he is, Gavin doesn't really know what he's doing anymore. "We have some things we need to talk about." Geoff says, gesturing to an empty seat.

It is now painfully aware to Gavin that everyone is in this room. They are sitting, staring at him with a mix of apprehension and their own singular worries or anger. Gavin squints his eyes at them and quickly catches on.

"You lot can't be serious." He says quietly, eyeing each of them. "We're very serious, take a seat." Ryan says, his expression the calmest yet the scariest of everyones in the room.

Gavin takes a seat, against his better judgement. "This is an intervention." Gavin breathes out, staring at them with wide eyes and drawn brows. "Yeah it is Gavin, we can't just let what happened last night slide." Michael retorts, his arms crossed and his jaw clenching and unclenching.

"It was nothing, I'm serious, it won't-" Jeremy interrupts, "It wasn't nothing, we're tired of pretending like what happens is nothing. You won't even fucking talk to us Gavin." Jeremy says, he started off angry, but by the end he just trails off. It makes Gavin flinch.

"I talk." Gavin says, glancing at Michael for back up. "No, I talk Gavin, I was the one to admit things to you, I was the one to try and get you to open up. You just- you listen and nod your head." Michael says, shaking his head.

Gavin feels the blood run out of his face. He felt like he was trying, he really did, but all of the things Michael says...they fit, they make sense. "I'm sorry." Gavin whispers. Michael sits up, his fists white. "You're always sorry, when are you going to actually mean it Gavin?!" Micheal says, his voice growing in volume.

Ryan is sitting next to Michael and attempts to calm him down. "I am sorry! I mean it! Where do you get off-" Gavin's voice grows as well. "Where do I get off? God you're such an asshole, you can't even see what you're doing to yourself." Michael yells, standing up and shrugging off Ryan's hand.

"What I'm doing to myself? In case you aren't bloody aware Michael, I lived for years on my own. I'm perfectly damn capable of taking care of myself." Gavin yells, standing up as well, his jaw clenching tightly and his face flushed.

"But you aren't!" Michael says, stabbing his finger at Gavin, Geoff stands up and goes between them, or rather tries to. Gavin stares into Michael's eyes, they're angry, but they're not really. Instead there’s something deep about them, something that hurts to look at.

"You aren't, it's like you don't know how or you just- you just won't." Michael says, much quieter. Geoff gets him to sit back down, Gavin stays standing. His breathing is hard and his eyes have a pressure building behind them. He hates this.

"What are you talking about?" Gavin asks, his palms clammy. "You drink too much, you do drugs, you can't sleep at night, you forget to eat, you forget to drink. You're going to end up accidentally killing yourself." Ryan lists off.

Gavin feels like he's exposed, they know him too well.

Gavin sits back down, he doesn't want to argue anymore. He seems to loose these more than he wins. Clearing his throat, he avoids their eyes. "I'm not going to kill myself okay, I've done this for a while. And so what if I forget things sometimes." Gavin attempts to cover for himself.

"It's a problem Gavin, you don't just ignore problems or they'll get worse. You have to deal with them." Jack says softly. Everything is so surreal, he's talking to a crew of hardened criminals about his inability to deal with things. God he wishes he could laugh.

Gavin stays silent.

"Talk to us Gavin." Geoff says, there is no question, there is no plead, Geoff is telling him what he needs to do.

"About what." He says faintly, slightly disappointed in himself about caving so easily. He hates how disappointed he is because this should be a good thing, it really should be, he wants it to be.

"Anything." Geoff says. Gavin sighs, and blinks, the topic is too broad, he has so many things he should tell them, so many, and picking just one is hard. One thing, one thing that he wants them to know. One thing about him.

"When I came to America I had nothing, I was on the run and didn't know anyone here." Gavin starts, still not looking at anyone. "I was here about six months when I met Meg. I was an even scrawnier kid back then, scared of everything, hungry, pick pocketing for my next meal. And then she saw me."

~

Shivering against the side of the building Gavin stares into the window, the bright neon lights inviting to him. His stomach grumbles and he remembers why he's here. Like he could forget.

Gavin scrambles to the way back and flips up the trash can lids, searching through them with a fervor filled with need. His clothes are too light for this weather, his hair hasn't been washed in days, he hasn't talked to anyone in weeks.

He hears tapping against concrete. Gavin stumbles away from the trash and whips his head to the ally entryway.

The woman in the entryway makes his eyes go wide, she is beautiful and gorgeous and looks like she could kill him any second. It makes Gavin’s heart seize but he’s frozen.

She looks him up and down, her expression does not change from boredom.

She instead walks closer, Gavin tensing and backing up. His back hits a wall and she is upon him. "Who are you?" She asks, looking very closely at him. He hesitates to speak, "Just tell me, from the looks of it you don't have much to lose." She says, raising an eyebrow at him as he swallows thickly.

"Gavin."

She hums, a smile creeping on her face as she nods to herself, backing away from him. "Well Gavin, I've noticed that you hang around here a lot." She says, Gavins face flushing in embarrassment.

"Do you know how to shoot a gun?" She suddenly asks, "Uh-yeah." Gavin answers, looking at her in confusion. "Good, and that accent, british?" She asks, Gavin nodding his head. "People love british accents, that's good, it'll be helpful to you." She says, gesturing him forward with her head.

Gavin moves away from the wall. "Of course we'll need to get you new clothes, you look like you'd be good in gold, do you like gold?" She asks, mostly muttering to herself.

"I-it's fine." Gavin says, looking away from her gaze, the woman nodding and walking out of the ally, stopping after a few feet to look behind her. "Well, aren't you coming?" She says, her smile growing as Gavin's eyes widen, he moves to catch up with her.

"What are you talking about?" Gavin asks, matching the woman's pace. "I'm going to take you under my wing, it looks like you need it." She says, not an ounce of pity in her words.

"Who are you?" Gavin asks, his feet slightly stumbling underneath him.

"Dollface." She says, not offering another word. Never offering another word.

Secretly Gavin wishes he would have said no to her when she asked about Gold.

But only secretly.

~

"She taught me a lot, some things helpful and some things...well she kept me from dying." Gavin ends, he chances meeting their eyes.

They look surprised.

"She didn't tell you her name?" Jack asks, Gavin shakes his head, "Not after a while, Meg and I are very similar, she knows little to nothing about me, and it's the same about her, I couldn't tell you what she did before this, who she was. It's how we worked." Gavin explains, shrugging.

It seems like the group lightens up after that.

"Thank you Gavin." Jack says, the phrase too heartfelt to receive an answer as Gavin just looks at him with his cheeks burning. "'S fine." He mumbles.

"Not to be too off topic but-" Geoff begins, Gavin thankful for the distraction.

Geoff holds up a small envelope.

"We still have this." He says, opening the envelope and spilling out the contents. “Three flash drives and a note...it says good luck.”

“Toss it.” Gavin says, holding a hand up for a drive. Geoff throws it and Gavin gets up to get his laptop.

Anything is better than talking.

Especially illegal stuff.

~

Gavin has come to the conclusion that riddles are not his thing, that and making any sense of these blueprints, but most importantly riddles. He can hear the others mumbling about the blueprints and words on the screen, they make nearly the same amount of sense to them.

Gavin looks back down at his own computer, the file named Flynt.

“The one in the pit is in control, the one who wins plays the role.” Ryan repeats, again. “Ignore the riddle, the blueprints, what are we looking at?” Geoff asks, pulling at his hair as it stays in wild strands.

...

“It’s just a big cave.” Michael says, pointing out the obvious. “No, it’s man made, it’s connected to the building.” Jack says, pointing at the staircases and elevators connecting the large depression to the otherwise normal looking building.

“Where is it?” Ryan asks, “Probably on the outside of the city, the gaff is too deep to be in it.” Gavin suggests.

“It’s just a big hole with a roof.” Michael repeats.

“Wait a minute.” Jeremy stands up, getting a better look at the blueprints as they are projected onto the wall. He traces the dimensions for a second.

“It’s a fighting ring.” Jeremy says softly, frowning at the wall. “How do you know?” Ryan asks, standing up and standing beside him.

“It’s underground, away from the city, inconspicuous. There’s a few here but none this big.” Jeremy says, Ryan agreeing next to him.

“So we know what it is.” Jack says, “Yeah but where is it?” Michael asks, the question stumping the room again. “I’ll look through the city’s files and see if there’s anything on this.” Jeremy says, taking the challenge upon himself.

“And what’s this name mean? Edgar.” Ryan asks, scratching his chin. “The files suggest he’s second in command.” Gavin pipes up, looking down at his computer. “Yeah but who is he?” Geoff mumbles, staring hard at the screen.

No information, no pictures, no age. Nothing on a so called Edgar. If he’s the second in command then why is there nothing on him. Just a name and a riddle.

Gavin racks his brains and sighs, deciding on helping Jeremy and looking for where the building may possibly be.

There’s a few locations that would work, finding the ones that work and aren’t hidden from the city is another thing entirely. It’s Flynt so it has to be in his territory, problem is most of his territory is already run down anyway, hiding a fighting ring wouldn’t be very hard.

One this big though...

...

“I know who Edgar is.” Ryan says sharply and suddenly, standing up so fast Gavin nearly drops his laptop in surprise.

“Edgar is the one in the hole.” He says seriously, without a hint of humor in his voice. “Ryan what the fuck are you talking about?” Geoff says, giving him a questionable look. “The whole thing is a fighting hole-er ring and who ever wins it is Edgar, Edgar is the one in the hole.” He repeats, eyes wide.

“The riddle.” Jeremy mumbles, “The one in the pit is in control, the one who wins plays the role.” Ryan repeats, his words running together as he talks faster. Like a mad man finding a reason to be mad.

“The role is Edgar, oh my god we did it, suck my dick Gus with your fancy ass riddles!” Geoff yells, pumping his fists in the air. Gavin laughs and feels the air become lighter as a breakthrough is finally made.

“So if no one’s actually Edgar...” Jack starts, “Then anyone could potentially be Edgar.” Ryan finishes, rubbing his hands together. “Even one of us.” Geoff says, his lips curling upwards.

“That’s how we get in.”

~

Gavin’s eyes burn slightly as he is staring at his computer screen, Jeremy doing the same on the other end of the couch, the room is silent and empty, aside from them. The others deciding they couldn’t help and going to bed for the night.

Jeremy and Gavin agreed they could find the hideout on their own.

It’s weird working next to someone, hearing them type while you type and mumble words you can just barely pick out but understand. It’s nice. Even Gavin’s willing to admit that.

It’s late, very, and Gavin can tell both of them should really be getting to sleep, but stubbornness is something they both know well. So instead Jeremy speaks up.

“Can I tell you something?” Jeremy asks, although it’s mostly rhetorical. “Absolutely not...Of course you can Jeremy.” Gavin teases, looking at him over the bright screen.

“I used to fight a lot in places like these.” Jeremy says, referring to the blueprints. “It’s how the crew found me.” He continues, typing something into his computer. “Do you think Geoff will make you go in?” Gavin asks, genuinely wanting to know.

“He won’t make me but he’ll definitely ask.”

“And you’ll say yes?”

“Yeah, it’s what I’m good at, it’ll be nice to prove that.” Jeremy says, looking over his own screen.

“What about Michael, Ryan, they stand a chance?” Gavin half jokes.

“I’ve beat there asses numerous times, I’m probably our best bet to winning the matches.” Jeremy says, being a tad bit cocky but if he can prove it, it’s not called being cocky it’s called being right.

“It’ll be damn fun to see.” Gavin says, chuckling lightly.

Quiet.

“We should probably get some sleep.”

“Brilliant idea lil J.”

They stay seated, but slouch, and curl up, and sink. They don’t really mean to, but the couch is comfy and the bedrooms are so far and they have a job to do or they did have a job to do as the computers seem to have mysterious shut themselves and settled on the floor.

Jeremy snores at night, is a thing Gavin briefly thinks to himself before following in Jeremy’s footsteps.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, finally, meaningful plot. To see behind the scenes and random drabbles/prompts follow my tumblr @nuggetsofross


	23. whatever It is

Days pass by and nights pass by, but there isn't really a difference if you don't look out a window. Gavin spends more time on the couch than in his bed, and he's not the only. Jeremy stays up with him to figure out where the blueprints lead them, Ryan pitching in every now and again. It's like the three are pulling one long all nighter.

"Number 8 is out of the running!" Jeremy shouts from his place on the floor which looks extremely uncomfortable but Jeremy doesn't seem to mind. Jack, closest to the map, crosses off 8.

"Cross off 3 too." Gavin says, Jack nodding his head and crossing off 3 as well. Five left.

From the whole city, to half of it, to swatches of it, to corners and splotches, to plots and now only five buildings. Five whole buildings.

Time wanes again, ebbing and flowing like an ocean and Gavin is barely conscious of it. He remembers waking up on the couch, a familiar feeling these days, and seeing only three left on the map.

It makes him work harder, which feels like an impossible feat, but somehow he pulls it off. "Two left." Geoff mentions as he walks into the living room, holding two cups of coffee. Both Jeremy and Gavin grunt in agreement, and even Ryan looks as though he's about to pass out in his chair, laptop held up precariously.

Hours pass by.

The coffees cold.

Ryan's asleep.

It's dark in the room again.

Gavin's head feels like it's melting and his hands cramp up every few seconds, not a great sign. Jeremy huffs loudly, fingers pressing down on the keyboard with far more pressure than needed, creating loud clacks in the semi-silence.

"I can't fucking decide if this one's it." Jeremy hisses out, voice low. Gavin pushes aside his own laptop and makes an effort to scoot closer to Jeremy on the other end of the couch.

"Lemme see." He says in a sleep slurred voice, vision slightly blurry. Jeremy moves positions, making it so that the two are sitting right next to each other, legs touching as he slides the laptop between them. Gavin squints at the screen, reading it over slowly.

"I can't make any sense of it the fucking blueprints are so old." Jeremy mutters out, glaring harshly at the screen.

"The fucking city can't even keep up to date shit in their files how the fuck are we going to pick between the two. God fucking damn it what are we going to tell Geoff, 'Sorry but we can't read this shit from the '60's so now we have to check them both.' That's going to take fucking forever, god fucking damn it!-" Jeremy's long rant is interrupted by Gavin.

"The building was demolished." He says flatly, pointing at the words on the bottom right of the screen.

Jeremy stays silent for another few seconds before he lets out a long forceful breath. "I'm a dumbass."

Gavin giggles lightly and Jeremy follows him, his laughs nearly breathless as they both slowly realize what this means. "We did it lil J!" Gavin says, throwing his arms in the air as a mock triumph.

"Thank god." Jeremy says pushing his laptop to the floor, the two still giggling softly. "Which one is it?" Gavin asks, Jeremy looking at him through the new darkness. "7." He says, yawning. "We should probably go tell someone." Gavin mutters, sleep pulling him down.

"Tomorrow." Jeremy says, pulling both himself and Gavin down on the couch, Gavin grateful for the sudden change, his eyes falling shut on their own.

"Usually I sleep nude so you ought to feel special Jeremy." Gavin jokes, Jeremys arms around him twitch as he laughs, the conversation trails off and Gavin feels Jeremys breath fan over the top of his head. "You were joking about the whole nude thing right?" Jeremy asks quietly.

"Of course I was you knob, go to sleep." Gavin says while chuckling. Minutes pass, Gavin is nearly asleep when Jeremy whispers something far too quietly for Gavin to pick up.

Gavin hopes it's something good as he falls asleep without hearing it or mentioning it.

~

Things are hectic in the morning.

Once the news is broken planning starts. This requires less of Gavin but nevertheless, it's still a hectic morning. It's decided, or rather just finally voiced, that Jeremy will be the crews Edgar. Jeremy seems proud, ready to prove himself, he doesn't really need to but no ones going to stop him from doing so.

Everyone is coming in with Jeremy, mainly because splitting up hasn't worked extremely well in the past, and mainly because Gavin has a feeling they're going to need it. If this goes down as planned that's two keys down and one to go.

Once they have all three keys the Fakes will be unstoppable.

There is a palpable energy in the air as things fall into place. It only takes a week for them to be ready, a week to create a plan that will overthrow one of the biggest crews in Achievement City. They're ready.

~

The hardest part of a job, especially one as intense as this, is always the beginning. There are several groups of people hanging around the entrance of the building. Jeremy and Ryan go in first, the duo looking normal among the rest of the people who meander into the building. Rugged, scarred, on edge.

Jack and Michael go in next, waiting for the others somewhere inside. They don't get many looks, Michael not nearly as brutish as them and Jack having a weird habit of being easily overlooked. It's a dangerous habit.

Gavin and Geoff wait around the corner, counting down the minutes in their heads. There's no way they get in without gaining some looks, Geoff for easily being recognizable and Gavin for looking very, very out of place. They walk to the building, side by side, Geoff's head up and Gavin's eyes sweeping the crowds.

The guards at the door eye Geoff, glances sliding to Gavin as the thoughts in their heads connect. They let them pass, not daring to stop Geoff Ramsey from entering. Gavin wonders if they've been waiting for him.

Whispers go off behind them as they enter the building, there presence not at all hidden. That is the plan, however.

Gavin and Geoff make there way to the dense crowd, Gavin's nose scrunching up as the smell of sweat and blood hits him. There's a lot of shouting, both angry and not. Gavin can see a large domed cage in the center, the room slowly declining and coming to a stop at the cage. There's people fighting, Gavin only knows this by the sounds of fist hitting flesh, seeing through the crowd is nearly impossible.

Ryan walks by them, they don't look at each other but Gavin breaks off, following after. They want to seem like they're all here alone, splitting off and walking around does a good enough job. Gavin trails after Ryan, who walks around the edge and finds a spot with fewer people.

Ryan sits down on the edge, the incline slightly sharper here as his legs dangle over the edge. Gavin sits next to him, pulling his beanie down farther as people walk past them. "He has to win four fights plus the champion." Ryan says, not looking at Gavin.

Gavin doesn't respond. "When does he go up?" Gavin asks under his breath. Ryan opens his mouth but a loud speaker comes on, "Newcomer Crusher against Newcomer Mr. J. First round betting open now!" A woman with a scratchy voice says, her voice echoing through the bowl shaped room.

"Mr. J?" Gavin muses, Ryan chuckling quietly. "Apparently so."

Gavin can just see Jeremy's figure from this height, joking to himself that it's because his freshly shaven head is very good at reflecting the bright lights centered on the cage.

The other man in the cage is actually kind of scrappy, considering his name is Crusher. This should be an easy fight to win. The round begins with a loud ringing noise. Crusher attacks first.

"You ever been to one of these things Rye?" Gavin says lowly, keeping an eye on the people around him. "Never, it looks brutish." Ryan answers, eyes narrowing on the fight. "What are the rules?" Ryan tilts his head, looking at Gavin through the corner of his eye. It's odd seeing Ryan out on a job without a mask.

"No weapons, first one knocked out loses." Gavin says, Ryan's eyebrow raising. "That's it?" He asks, Gavin nodding and flinching as Crusher takes a hard kick to the side.

"There's no precision to it, it's just a bunch of crazed fighting." Ryan mutters as the fight continues on, Gavin's prediction is coming true, Crusher is swaying on his feet, blood on the floor already. Jeremy stays strong, his fists up, he looks like a statue from here.

"Precisions not the point, winning is." Gavin says, cheering with the people around him as Crusher goes down, his body not moving from the ground. Ryan's thinking about this in terms of actual boxing or fighting for sport. That's not what this is at all.

This is fighting for your rent, for your family, this is fighting because you have no other choice. The people here don't know how to box, to fight cleanly, they know how to fight to win. And that's just what they're going to do.

A man jumps into the ring and grabs Jeremy's wrapped hand, raising it up in victory. The crowd is deafening. The man laying on the ground still has not moved.

"That's one win." Gavin says, spying Michael and Jack around the outside of the dense crowd surrounding the ring. "Be safe." Ryan says, watching Gavin stand up.

"You too." He says as he walks towards the outside, he passes Geoff, they don't make eye contact.

By the time he makes his way to where Jack and Michael are Jeremy is back up, the two matches between then and now were nothing special, but now it seems that Jeremy actually has some competition. Gavin goes to Michael's side, the movement slightly awkward as they haven't properly spoken in about a week.

Michael glances at him, then back to the cage. "Mr. J versus Kong!" The announcer lady says. "How original." Jack mutters, Michael and Gavin snickering under their breaths.

True to Kongs name, the man is giant, covered in hair and wearing maybe a little too revealing an outfit for this. Gavin can see that Jeremy is trying his best not to laugh.

The round starts and Michael is whooping as Jeremy gets the first hit, a solid punch to the right side of Kongs face. Kong retaliates, hard, knocking Jeremy back a few steps.

Kong doesn't let Jeremy recover, running up at him and pining him against the cage, metal digging into Jeremy's back. Jeremy pushes back and moves to the side, putting some distance between them.

King is chuckling under his breath. He throws a punch and Jeremy deflects it, grabbing the mans shoulder and pulling back hard, sweeping his legs out from under him. Kong hits the ground on his back, growling and rolling to his hands. Jeremy watches him, not low enough to kick him while the mans down.

Kong gets back up and throws another punch, hitting Jeremy solidly in the side. They move apart, circling each other. They’re both breathing heavy.

Jeremy throws a punch and misses but comes back with a jab to the mans gut, Kong cringing into himself slightly. Jeremy winds back and hits the man hard on the side of the head with he elbow.

It knocks Kong to the ground with a groan, he rears back up and Gavin can see Jeremy mutter under his breath.

Kong stands up, his stance sloppy as he puff out his chest again, he opens his mouth to say something but Jeremy throws a hard punch.

It knocks Kong to the ground and this time he stays there. Gavin yells with the crowd, his smile wide as the man comes back into the cage and holds up Jeremys bloody fist, raising it. Jeremy smirks widely at the crowd, bruises starting to form.

Gavin turns to talk with Michael but sees that he has already gone, he shuts his mouth and smiles at Jack as he finishes cheering. “Two left.” Jack mouths, Gavin winking and leaving the crowd.

He goes to the edge, keeping his head down. Anyone in this place could knock him out in one punch and he’s not anxious to test that out. He stops and glances at the ring as another match is announced.

He senses someone is close behind him. “Gavin.” A voice states, making him freeze, his breathing nearly stopping. The back of his arm is grabbed and he is moved back. It’s darker here, that fact makes Gavin’s hair stand on end.

His arm is let go and he spins around, glaring at the man in front of him. His arms are up in a weak fighting stance. “Who are you?” He asks, his voice strong.

“We’ve met before but no, you wouldn’t know my name would you.” The man says, smirking and leaning back on a cement pillar. Gavin stares at the man, mind thinking back to anytime he could have met him. His eyes widen.

“Peri.” He says, mentioning the name of the club he was at a little more than a week ago. “Seems you do remember me.” The man says, raising an eyebrow.

The announcer says Jeremy’s up, but Gavin can’t peel himself away. “We didn’t talk very much last time and I find that quite a shame.” The man says smoothly, gesturing for Gavin to take a seat on one of the benches strewn about. Eerily, no one is around them, in this packed room not a single person is within earshot.

Gavin takes a seat, his nerves sparking on every inch of his skin. The man sits across from him, his arms on the table with his palms up. A sign of friendliness.

“Gavin, I know you’ve given up job offers before but I feel like this one you should give some extra thought to.” The man says, sharply smiling.

“How do you know my name.” Gavin asks, forcing his body to seem relaxed. “I know a lot about you Gavin, this past week has really opened my eyes.” The man says, his youthful appearance and smooth voice should be easing him, instead it just creeps him out.

Gavin’s brain is reeling and he hears the crowd cheering behind him, the Man looks over Gavins shoulder and smiles. “Seems Jeremy won.” He says, Gavins body tensing again.

“This little plan of yours just might work.” The Man compliments, Gavin’s heart nearly stopping. “What are you talking about.” Gavin tries to be steady, but this is too much too fast, how does this man know them.

“Oh, the whole getting Jeremy to be Edgar thing, it’s smart.” The Man says, nodding to himself, but then shakes his head and tutts.

“Except...” He trails off, sighing in fake sympathy. “Except what.” Gavin says, sitting up.

“Oh Gavin, you care too much about them.” He says, shaking his head. “Except what.” Gavin repeats louder, his eyes hard. “I’ll tell you, if you listen to my offer.” The Man says.

Gavin clenches his jaw, he doesn’t even know this man why does he want him to work for him.

“I’m not working with-“ the Man cuts him off, “Just hear me out before you say anything.” He says, smiling freely.

Gavin doesn’t say anything, but he gives a small nod.

The Man starts his pitch. “If you haven’t figured it out yet I’m someone very powerful here, extremely powerful.” He says, eyes warming as he congratulates himself.

“And if I’m not Geoff, or God forbid, Flynt, who am I? I know you’re smart Gavin.” He says, Gavins breath catching in his throat, his hands tighten into fists.

“Coal.” The Man chuckles and leans back. “Bingo.” Gavin goes to stand up but Coal stops him, grabbing his hand and smiling at him, his teeth abnormally sharp in Gavin’s head.

“I won’t hurt you Gavin, if that was my intention you would have been hurt a long time ago.” Coal says, Gavin sitting back down, not like he has a choice.

“What do you want with me, I’m not going to sell out my Crew.” Gavin says harshly, his civil tone lost. “Loyalty is a very good trait to have Gavin, I would never ask you to do something you didn’t want to do.” Coal says.

“In fact, I feel like you will really want to work with me, with us. We’ll be strong, stronger than anyone else in this city.” Coal looks off to the side and tilts his head, seemingly deep in thought.

“Can’t you feel it Gavin, that you were made for more?” He says softly, the moment making Gavin loose his bitterness for a few seconds before he regains it with a new fury, he hears Jeremy’s final match until he goes against Edgar being announced.

“You know something about he matches.” Gavin says, feeling a sudden wave of apprehension. “Yes, I suppose I do. But once I tell you you’ll just leave, without giving our chat a second thought.” Coal says, leaning forward.

They stay silent, looking at each other. Gavin clenches his jaw tightly then sighs, “I’ll think about it.” He says.

Coal smiles widely, “Excellent.” He puts a serious face on, glancing behind Gavin at the match. “My brother is not keen on having a new Edgar anytime soon, so he might happen to...overlook a few rules when it comes to him.” Coal shrugs, as if he understands.

Gavin stands up, his heart is racing. He rushes to the ring, “See you soon.” Coal says, waving at him.

There’s only two rules about fighting here. Gavin elbows past some frightening looking people, grateful they look to busy to follow after him.

Whoever is knocked out first loses.

Gavin sees Jeremy as he is sitting down with what seem like other fighters, bandaging himself up. He’s won four fights, this next one of his is Edgar.

And no weapons.

Edgar cheats, Edgar cheats at the only two rules of fighting. Edgar has a weapon. Jeremy doesn’t know Edgar has a weapon. Oh bollocks.

Gavin slips past the people around him to Jeremy who’s face goes from confusion to happiness to concern in less than two seconds.

“Whats wrong?” Jeremy says, getting to his feet. Gavin looks around and drags Jeremy to a more isolated area.

“Edgars going to cheat.” Gavin says, Jeremy blinking at him. Then he understands. “Edgar has a weapon?” Jeremy says, drawing his eyebrows down. “Yes, Jeremy, you can’t fight him if he has a weapon!” Gavin says, his tone turning hysteric.

“Woah Gavin, calm down.” Jeremy says, putting his bandaged hands on Gavin’s shoulders. “I have to fight him.” Jeremy says, and before Gabin can go on Jeremy continues. “I need you to trust me Gav, I can do this, this is our only chance, I can’t give up just because Edgar cheats.” Jeremy says. It sounds so logical when Jeremy says it but Gavin can’t help the crushing feelings in his chest.

“What if you lose, what if he hurts you Jeremy what if he-“ Jeremy pulls Gavin to him, it stops him from talking, his breathing is slightly panicky. “Trust me Gav.” He says softly, Gavin says nothing but he nods his head, “Ok Jer.” He says, shakily.

They break apart and someone walks towards them, motioning for Jeremy. “I’m up.” Jeremy says, smiling at Gavin who bites his lip. “You’re such a nutter.” Gavin mutters, Jeremy laughing. “Thanks for the confidence.” He goes to move but Gavin pulls him back and their lips collide quick and messily, but the meaning is still there.

“Kick his ass.” Gavin says, Jeremy smirking widely as he turns around and heads to the ring.

Gavin takes a few seconds for himself, and then goes to find anyone, he spots Jack first. “Last one.” Jack says as soon as he sees Gavin. “Edgars going to cheat.” Gavin mutters, his stare fixed on Jeremy, whose smile has not left his face.

“Cheat? Did you tell Jeremy?” Jack says, Gavin nodding. “I’m guessing he said something along the lines of I’ll still beat the motherfucker.” Jack guesses, “Pretty much.” Gavin says.

A man walks into the ring, his hands wrapped. Gavin can only assume this is Edgar. The crowd goes wild as he steps into the ring, hands held high. First impression of Edgar leaves Gavin unsatisfied, he looks like any other chaff in the room.

The match starts and Gavins impression changes.

Edgar is big, powerful, each swing would be enough to knock out even Michael, maybe Ryan. Jeremy jumps out of the way, his expression is blank, Gavin wishes he could tell what he’s thinking.

The crowd is deafening, they are excited, they want to see blood. Jeremy’s foot connects with Edgar and they scream with the thrill of it. It makes Gavin a little nauseous.

Edgar is angry, his face shows it, and he runs to Jeremy, grabbing him and throwing him down, Jack flitches next to him. Jeremy is down and Edgar is winding up for a kick, Gavin’s eyes widen and he grabs Jacks hand, squeezing it hard when Edgars foot connects with Jeremys stomach, the man crying out lowly and rolling over, trying to quickly get up. He’s kicked over again and Gavin makes a noise in the back of his throat.

“Get up!” Gavin yells, Jack squeezing his hand and yelling with him. Jeremy manages to get up before Edgar can kick him again, staying a good distance from him.

Jeremy goes for a punch and hits the side of Edgars face, it doesn’t do much. Jeremy backs up as Edgar goes for a punch, fakes him out, then goes to grab Jeremy again. Gavin holds his breath as Edgar wraps his arms around Jeremy’s middle.

Acting fast Jermey strikes Edgar in the face with his knee, Edgar looses his grasp and his hands go to his face, which is now sporting a heavily bleeding nose. Jeremy tosses him to the ground and straddles him, throwing hit after hit to the uncovered sides of Edgars head.

Gavin cheers and feels Jack squeezes his hand hard, before he can see why Jeremy shouts, rolling to his side, holding a hand there.

Edgar laughs darkly, standing up shakily, brandishing a small knife. It’s dripping. All around him are boos, but they don’t sound serious. No one stops Edgar as he walks closer to Jeremy.

Gavin yells for Jeremy to move, Jack yelling with him. Jeremy stands up, painfully, and nearly growls at Edgar, eyes fixed on the knife.

Edgar slashes at him, Jeremy jumping back at the last second, nearly loosing his footing. Jeremy attempts to make a move but Edgar has pinned him against the metal cage and himself.

“Cheater!” Jack yells, Gavin loosing color in his face as the match continues. Jeremy glances at them, eyes moving from Jack to Gavin. His eyes stay on Gavin and then he looks back at Edgar just as he slashes forward, Gavin hides his eyes in Jacks side. He hears a loud scream, then a clank, a body hitting the floor.

People boo, people cheer, people....

We have a winner.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mm this is getting good! For behind the scenes and writing I don’t post here follow my tumblr @Nuggetsofross


	24. what a curse

Brief tense silence.

It hits hard.

Cheering and cheering and cheering and Gavin can't see past the people in front of him as they are jumping and yelling and pumping fists into the air. Loud noises and loud people and loud thoughts and Gavin can't find Jack anymore.

He struggles through the crowd to get closer and there is an announcement but it's too loud in the pit to hear it and then even more screaming starts and Gavin is frantic. _Where's Jeremy_.

He can't tell the difference between the people he has passed, they're one big blur as time somehow slows and speeds up randomly. **_Where's Jeremy_**. He feels like he's spinning, maybe it's because he's walking in circles. He's walking in circles. He stops and feels closed in, Gavin's not normally claustrophobic but he can feel his chest tightening and his breathing threaten to stop.

A hand grabs him by the waist, yanking him to the side and out of the crowd. Gavin stumbles, the hand tightening on his waist as whoever it is makes Gavin face them. "Michael." Gavin breaths, the man in front of him tight lipped. "Hurry we have to move." He says, Gavin nodding and stumbling when he's led forward. Michael's hand is rough in his own and it briefly runs through his head how much he missed the feeling.

A gun shot rings out and chaos breaks loose again.

"Geoff?" Gavin mumbles, the two stashing off to the side as people frantically run past them. "Yeah, Jeremy's making his move too."

Gavin breathes a huge sigh of relief, Michael's lips twitch as he reaches to his side and subtly passes Gavin something as the crowd is getting thinner. "We have to find Geoff, Ryan's tailing after Jeremy." He says lowly, moving from cover and pulling out his gun, shooting twice into the air.

People scramble past, random gunshots go off, it's a panic. They run through the crowd together, Michael shouldering past people. "Jeremy's okay?" Gavin pants, Michael nodding, "Guy went for the stab, missed and Jeremy knocked him the fuck out, other guy landed on his knife and it was over from there." Michael explains, keeping pace with Gavin.

Jeremy's okay, Jeremys okay. God Jeremy's okay.

A gun goes off and Michael ducks, Gavin following him and nearly tipping the both of them over. "There's Jack!" Gavin whispers lowly to Michael, seeing Jack a good distance away.

"Good chance he's with Geoff." Michael says, his gun up. Gavin follows suit and puts up the gun Michael passed to him. "Should we run to him." Gavin asks, the two behind an overturned table near the outside. "Easiest way there." Michael says then grins, his stance changing. "Let's do it."

The two take off in the middle of the thin crowd, feet hitting the ground and shots going off in the background some coming towards them others not. They're in no mans land and it's exhilarating.

Michael stumbles for a second, causing Gavin to slow. Looking around his vision swims with adrenaline, then it suddenly sharpens. Coal is steadily looking at them, he and Gavin too close for comfort. It happens slowly, a raised arm, a narrowed eye, a cheeky wink, and then a smile.

Then things move too fast for Gavin to comprehend.

Michael falls down, the sound of a gunshot a little before. Gavin stops so suddenly he falls next to Michael, his knees burning and falling numb as he does so.

Michael yells, and it's painful, painful to Gavin and to Michael as he continues to scream in pain stopping abruptly as Gavin gets to him. Gavin is woozy, turning Michael to face him in a thoughtless motion. "Michael, Michael boi." He mumbles as he looks at the front of Michael, slowly turning a dark red, the stain blooming from a hole in his chest.

Michael rasps, his jaw straining as his eyes are tightly shut. Gavin goes white, he knows he does, and his arms and hands and body tremble as he takes off his jacket rapidly and robotically, pressing it hard on the wound. Michael muffles a yell, Gavin gags.

"You're alright Michael, it's gunna be okay boi." He repeats, frantically looking around him, nearly weeping in joy when he sees Jack running to them.

Michael grabs Gavin's hand tightly, his brow furrowed and his eyes swimming. "Gavin I'm sorry, that was such a stu...stupid idea." He breathes out, shaking his head, his gaze sharpening. "It's okay Jacks coming Michael, Michael it's okay." Gavin says, having not really heard Michael, eyes a tad glazed over as his arms shake under the pressure he gives to the jacket on Michaels wound.

"Gavin sh-shut up and listen to me you...asshole." Michael says, his voice trembling. Gavin stares at him, not making a word, his throat is tight.

"I have to tell you if-if. Gavin I-" Michael's voice gets softer, his eyes more serious. Gavin stops him, "Stop. Not right now Michael, please, not right now." Gavin says lowly, his voice flat. Michael stares at him with a look he's seen before and Gavin can't help but notice blood is starting to pool.

"Gavin I love-" Gavin stops him again, tightening his hand on Michael's. He shakes his head. "Michael if you tell me you love me right now, while your bleeding out in my arms, I will never forgive you." Gavin whispers, his eyes are wet, his voice cracks and he takes a breath.

Jack arrives and kneels opposite to Gavin, lifting the jacket briefly then placing his own pressure on the wound. "Gavin I need you to tell Geoff what happened, he's next to the ring." He says, slipping into a calming tone as he looks over the wound.

Gavin hesitates, then Jack looks at him, his eyes soft and his arms not shaking, a sharp contrast to Gavin. Nodding he stumbles to his feet, his gun in a clammy grip as he turns towards the ring and runs. Michael says something but Gavin can not hear it, will not hear it, not right now.

Gavin sees colours blur past him and noises go over him and people go around him. He's always been good at running, sometimes he feels like he was born to run. The urge in him is primal and he can't feel his feet hit the ground. This is the closest to flying he can get.

Noticing Geoff makes everything come back to him and he stops, seeing Geoff alone and surrounded by a few half dozen people. All guns are raised.

Gavin acts first, always thinking last.

Shooting the first person next to him Gavin doesn't wait for him to hit the ground before he is aiming at another, glad for the close range as he pulls the trigger feet away from the man, blood pooling in a way Gavin knows intimately. He is not fast enough to get a third shot in, ducking around a close pillar to narrowly avoid a bullet that lodges itself in the pillar.

Geoff pops out and shoots at the men the same time Gavin does, decimating the rest of them in a loud, heated exchange of fire power. Gavin stands and looks over at Geoff, the man moving from his crouch. "Michael's shot." Gavin says, Geoff's posture going rigid.

He nods.

The giant room is almost empty, with a just a few bodies laying around. Gavin can pick out where Jeremy must be, it's the only place with people.

Geoff doesn't have to say anything before the two are rushing to get to Jeremy.

Gavin can't see Jeremy but he can see Ryan and it makes him run faster and faster and faster. Until he sees the situation. Slowing down he sees Ryan at the foot of a giant stairway, wide enough for several cars, wide enough for Jeremy plus one.

Jeremy is being held tightly on the shoulder by a man Gavin doesn't recognize, but everything about him says it's Flynt. A gun is in the hand of Flynt, a gun is at the head of Jeremy, a gun is on the sides of Ryan, Gavin, and Geoff.

Flynt says something but Gavin can not hear him, his heart is beating loudly and angrily and his fists are shaking. Geoff speaks next to him, something about a deal, money, drugs, Gavin couldn't care less. His focus is on Jeremy and Flynt.

Jeremy is a steel eyed, clenched jaw, lip twitching statue. His head being pushed on hard by a hand gun.

Flynt is laughing and winking and his face is a bad mask because his hands are shaking, the hand on Jeremy is shaking, the gun is shaking.

Gavin is no longer shaking.

Gavin does that thing again, that thing where he acts but doesn't think. Irrational and angry and impulsive, all bundled together in one shot as Flynt moves the gun from Jeremy's head.

Gavin's gun is still up when Flynt hits the floor, he is still not shaking.

His hearing comes back slowly, he knows that Geoff is saying something and Ryan is saying something but all he does is look at Jeremy. Stunned Jeremy looks at him with wide eyes and with something akin to fear in them and it makes Gavin feels sick, he blurts out the only thing he can.

"Michael's been shot." He says, Ryan tensing and Jeremy stumbling over to them quickly, grabbing something out of Flynt's hand as he does so. "Let's get out of here." Geoff says, throwing side glances at Gavin once he turns around and heads to Michael.

They run but it doesn't seem quick enough, Jeremy is slightly limping, dried blood on his side. The slice in his shirt suggests it's his.

Jack is still with Michael, the jacket seems almost soaked through. "Can you carry him?" Jack asks Ryan, who nods and kneels down to a very pale, ill, looking Michael. Ryan gently picks him up and grunts when he stands up, only straining a bit.

Michael is passed out and doesn't wake up. Even when they get to the van Michael is oddly, scarily, quiet. Gavin sits next to him, wary of touching him.

Gavin doesn't miss the face out of the corner of his vision, watching them. He shivers subconsciously.

It's dead quiet in the van, the realization of everything hitting everyone at once. Jeremy opens his palm and reveals a flash drive. What a hollow victory.

There is no room for celebration as Michael is carried into the penthouse. No one can stomach cheers right now.

Jack has Ryan place Michael in the infirmary and shuts the door. Gavin feels empty as he hears the door shut.

They had everything planned out, every single contingency. Yet Michael's laying in the infirmary and Jeremy's getting stitches from Ryan.

Gavin feels like he's going to throw up, and so he goes to the bathroom and does just that. It's cathartic, to a point.

Time passes, it’s dark outside and Gavin decides to join the living again. He sneaks to the living room, the light still on.

“Did you see him.”

“It was impulsive.”

“It saved my life.”

Gavin stops before the doorframe, out of sight of the three voices.

“I’ve never seen him like that.”

“Me neither.”

“It was impressive.”

Gavin can pick out the voices. Ryan, Geoff, and Jeremy.

“Are you concerned?”

“...Maybe.”

“Why. He’s not worse than Michael or I.”

Gavin knows what they’re talking about. They should be concerned, Gavin is a very impulsive person, and this most certainly won’t be the last time he does something like this. He knows it won’t.

“I’ve just never seen him act like that.”

“Should we ask him about it.”

“Would he even tell us.”

Gavin moves away from the doorframe, shoulders hunched. He rapidly blinks, going into the nearest room. He doesn’t want to hear anymore.

He’s in the infirmary.

Jack is asleep on the bed next to Michaels, undoubtedly falling asleep while watching over him. Michael was in stable condition last Gavin heard, and it seems true as Michael breathes softly in his bed, chest bandaged over with machines beeping around him.

Gavin goes to leave. He doesn’t want to see Michael this way.

“Stay.” Michael says roughly, his voice cracking as he does so. Gavin freezes, turning to look back at Michael as his eyes are open and staring at him.

Gavin hesitates but walks over to Michael, sitting in the chair next to his bed. It reminds him of the last time he saw Ray, sitting in this very chair.

Michael stays quiet, looking at Gavin, an unspoken question on his mind.

“I’m sorry Michael-“ He catches himself, Michaels brows drawing closer as he does so. He shouldn’t apologize, Michael doesn’t want an apology.

He bites his lip, looking at Michael. “The last time I held someone in my arms they died.” Gavin starts, Michaels face changing but Gavin can’t get himself to look as he stares at the wall beside him.

“The last time I held someone in my arms they said-they said..”Gavin stops and takes a breath his chest tight and painful. “They said ‘I love you’ and I couldn’t do that again.” Gavin whispers, Michael not saying anything.

“And then I was holding you and you say ‘Gavin I love-‘ and I couldn’t do it, not again. It’s a curse Michael, it’s something people say before they die.” Gavin mumbles softly.

There’s a beat of silence.

“Gavin I love you.”

Moving his head to Michael Gavin’s eyes widen, mouth parting open silently. “And I’m not dying, at least not for a fucking while. It’s not some curse.” Michael says, his words fierce.

“It’s not a curse.” Michael repeats, grabbing Gavin’s hand, almost desperate for him to understand.

Gavin does understand, on some level, but when he looked at Michael on the ground and could only see him...it’s hard to believe it’s not.

Gavin faintly thinks Michael and Dan would have gotten along. Of course Dan would have, Dan got along with everybody.

Until he didn’t.

God and then Gavin went **crazy**.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So uh...Two down one to go! For more of this follow my tumblr @nuggetsofross


	25. Time Goes By But Fate Does Not

"We need to leave." Geoff says as he opens the door to the infirmary, Gavin sitting bolt right in the chair next to Michael, his back and neck sore from falling asleep in such a cramped place.

"What are you talking about Geoff?" Michael murmurs into his pillow, trying to block out the light from the hallway. "Someone knows we're here."

At that one Michael sits up, wincing as he does so. "Who?" He asks, startled. Geoff walks into the room, gesturing for Michael to start getting up. As Michael attempts to get up Geoff explains, "There was a note." He says, helping Michael up and letting him lean on him.

"A note?" Gavin asks, following after the two. "Yeah, So we're heading out, we have a safe house about an hour away." Geoff says, they walk into the living room and Geoff helps Michael sit down, who looks in pain even from that short walk.

"How long." Michael grunts, gritting his teeth. "A few weeks, a month tops." Geoff supplies, turning his head to Gavin. "Pack anything that you need, laptop, clothes. We can buy anything else later." Geoff says. Gavin nods and walks to his room in a quick pace, opening his door and blindly grabbing his empty bag.

Gavin packs quickly and walks out of his room with one bag and his laptop. He briefly sees Geoff go into Michael's, and wanders back into the living room. Michael is half asleep on the couch and Jeremy is frantically going around the rooms, seemingly looking for things he's missed.

Ryan is sitting on a chair, arms crossed with a few bags at his feet. He looks up when Gavin enters, the two looking at each other without talking, then looking away, Gavin glancing back at Michael. "Are you packed Jeremy?" Jack yells, walking into the same room as Gavin, nodding at him as he does.

Jeremy responds faintly from a few rooms over and Jack drops his few bags on the floor next to the couch, ducking back out into the hallway. "What time is it?" Gavin says quietly, Ryan humming and looking down at his wrist, his hat obscuring his face. "It's about three."

Not even a day has gone past, not even a night. Jack comes back into the living room, now with Geoff who has a couple duffles. Geoff slowly looks over the room, his face ashen. Jeremy walks back into the living room and Geoff speaks, "Let's go, Ryan help Michael." He says, heading to the doorway.

Gavin stays back, letting Ryan walk up with Michael, helping him hobble to the van. Jeremy goes ahead, cautiously behind Michael. Jack walks in front of Gavin and Gavin follows, quietly asking behind him, "What did the note say?"

Jack cringes, adjusting the grip on his bags, "It said 'Have you considered' nothing else, no name or anything." Jack says. Gavin pales and falls behind Jack, trailing behind, he is the last to get into the van, his mind racing. He stays quiet about Coal, mainly because he doesn't know how to bring it up without feeling guilty.

"Get comfy." Jack says as he starts the van, Gavin sits between Geoff and Ryan with Jeremy next to Ryan, the two quietly talking. Michael sits upfront, falling asleep quickly.

The back of the van isn't equipped with seats, mainly used for quick run and gun heists and so Gavin leans his back against the vans wall. "Matt and Trevor are looking after the house while we're gone." Geoff says, glancing at Jeremy who nods, a look of nostalgia passing over his face. Gavin's heard of them, part of the Crew but mostly small work, Jeremy's mentioned them a few times.

Jack starts the car and they drive off, Gavin feels a pinch in his chest as they leave the driveway, looking back at the house as it gets farther and farther away. Gavin brings his knees to his chest and wraps his arms around them, his head heavy with sleep.

No one speaks. No one can. No one knows what to speak about.

Gavin could talk about Coal, explain the notes meaning, then he thinks about the conversation Geoff, Jeremy, and Ryan had about him. He can't bring up Coal, it'll make him look even worse. Gavin can take care of this himself. Right.

The radio is on, blaring a song Gavin has heard what feels like a million times. Jeremy hums quietly, Ryan putting an arm over Jeremy's shoulders, his fist clenching and unclenching rhythmically. Geoff stares at nothingness, Gavin watching him out of the corner of his eye, searching his face and finding nothing.

They arrive at what looks like an empty cabin, a sharp contrast to the pristine penthouse. Jack parks and slowly everyone gets out, Ryan going back around to help Michael and Gavin offering a hand to Jeremy as he struggles to get out of the car. He's winded and Gavin can only assume it's because of his side.

Jeremy slightly leans into Gavin and the two enter the cabin last. "There's two beds and a pullout couch." Geoff says, dropping his bag to the floor. "Michael, Jeremy, take one of the beds." Jack says, dropping his bags as well, stretching his back out.

Ryan nods at Jack and helps Michael to an unknown room, Gavin scrambles to follow Ryan, leading Jeremy as he does. The cabin is dark, Gavin squinting in the hallway before flinching as Ryan flips a switch on and walks into one of the rooms.

Gavin follows after and looks around the room, Jeremy doing the same. It looks like it hasn't been used for a bit, a thin layer of dust over most things. Gavin wonders how often they use the safe house at all. Ryan sets Michael down on the bed and he immediately falls asleep. Jeremy hobbles over with Gavin's help and lays next to Michael, heaving a sigh as he does so. "Night." Ryan softly says, Jeremy repeating it to him.

They walk out and Gavin hesitates as they start to the other room, Gavin hearing people already in it. "I can take the couch." Gavin whispers, his face as stoic as he can make it. Ryan looks back at him, eyes clouded, "That's your choice." Ryan says, his lips twitching, what he wants plainly on his face.

Gavin stands for a moment, before he walks to Ryan who opens the door.

There are no words exchanged as they walk in and Gavin believes that it is better that way. Life is not a movie, some things do not need to be discussed. As they all fit themselves into what has to be a custom made bed, as they fit together fine, Gavin stays on the outside, and it is good. Ryan is the one that lays next to him and Geoff is the farthest away. Gavin has never shared a bed like this before, tension lays heavy like the blanket on top of him. All of the things that could be said but will not fill the air.

Tonight they will not talk because there is not enough air. All of the air left when Michael was shot, all of the air left when they got the note. All of the air left and Gavin feels like he is suffocating but no one else is. He wonders if he’s the problem, he realizes he probably is, probably has been.

Ryan moves closer to him and Gavin is glad, he feels cold underneath his skin. Gavin turns towards to Ryan and does what feels right, Ryan’s arms around him and Gavins head on his chest. It’s okay, tonight they don’t need talking.

Gavin can hear Jack snoring into the darkness and feels that maybe they have done enough talking, feels that Geoff has not fallen asleep yet, feels that Ryan’s heart is beating faster than normal.

~

Gavin wakes up in the morning, but by now it’s closer to the afternoon. Waking up is awkward, and so he does it first, leaving the bed without waking up anyone and going to the bathroom, he picks up his clothes and changes.

Deciding he is ready Gavin walks back to the living room and meets the now awake Geoff, their eyes meet without hesitation and Gavin smiles.

Gavin supposes it was always meant to be this way, easy laughs and talking, jokes and teasing. Jeremy gets up and Gavin asks him how much money to down an old can of soup in the kitchen, he offers an outrageous amount for the dusty can.

Of course Jeremy is a stubborn bastard and really how bad can soup get, downing it takes maybe a minute, but living with the decision forever. Jeremy is hundreds richer, Gavin is just richer as he smiles wide at Jeremy.

Michael is still on bed rest and so Gavin talks because he knows that’s what Michael wants, even though he won’t admit it, and so he talks about everything. Gavin had a stint as a videographer but it never really panned out, he tells this to Michael with a far away gaze and Michael says with a croaky voice that Gavin would have been the best, would have made it big. Of course Gavin laughs, as he does, and spouts off about something else.

Jack cleans the cabin and Gavin helps, or he says he will, as he watches Jack and asks him questions. Jack responds to him much like Jack does, with a resounding what the fuck are you talking about. Gavin likes to make Jack laugh and likes to listen to him speak, and so he asks him questions that even he doesn’t know what they mean. It makes Jack laugh so hard he swears he almost cries and Gavin can’t and won’t let it leave his mind.

Jeremy and Ryan talk a lot, Jeremy and Gavin talk a lot, Ryan and Gavin do not. However they are the ones to sit outside together and watch the birds outside tweet and twitter, Ryan thinking it a miracle that Gavin can sit quietly as long as he does. They sit shoulder to shoulder and arm to arm and Gavin never learned much from a man that didn’t speak but it would be lying if he said that was true with Ryan. Ryan is a quiet man but not a silent man and Gavin can hear him mumble and hum under his breath a melody he hasn’t heard in years and it brings a painful smile to his face and he wishes he could learn everything about him, but he sits and Ryan sits and they watch as a bird tweets to another.

Geoff and Gavin are two halves of one person but refuse to admit it. Gavin keeps low because he knows Geoff thinks he’s dangerous and impulsive and reckless and it’s not like he can tell him that he’s not because it would be a lie. But Gavin wishes he could say something so Geoff wouldn’t look at him like that.

Yet Geoff looks at him and sees none of that, instead he sees a mystery and a person and he sees them separately. Gavin talks but not about himself and Geoff listens but never learns. Together they are first to breakfast, first to speak, first to laugh, and first to joke, and they are different. They do the same and act the same but they are not the same and they don’t even know what to say to each other because Gavin wants to say he’s sorry but Geoff wants none of that.

So Geoff attempts to hold Gavins hand under the table and Gavin lets him but neither talk. Gavin use to think not speaking was okay, then Geoff did it.

So one day they’re out in the kitchen, first ones to wake as always and Gavin does something he never thought he would do and Geoff does it back. They stand in a kitchen together with their arms wrapped around each other and Geoff speaks, “Good morning.” And Gavin realized that’s all he needs.

And just like that words flow easier and touches form easier and Gavin feels himself bubble up and he is soaring.

But he does not say It.

Not even when Jeremy is beating him in Mario Kart and Gavin stops playing just to look at him in the glint of the light from the television, his face deep in concentration. Gavin grabs the controller from Jeremy’s hand, who turns to him in loud protest but he is silenced quickly, lips on lips the game all but ignored. Gavin knows how to make Jeremy a puddle of rage and anger and yelling and Jeremy knows how to make Gavin a ball of laughter and squeaks and squirms and they are a perfect team. Gavin can not imagine a life without someone like Jeremy. And Jeremy can not imagine a life without Gavin.

He does not say It even when Jack is laying in the sun with god awful glasses on and a bright flower print shirt with the biggest smile Gavin has ever seen and he is radiating. Gavin lays beside him and Jack offers him a smile brighter and warmer than the sun and Gavin can’t help but think that maybe Jack is the sun. Gavin has never kissed the sun before, and is surprises him when it doesn’t burn, instead it is warm and calming and feels like he is home. The only thing Gavin can complain about is that the beard kind of gets in the way.

He does not say It when Ryan finally does talk, and doesn’t stop. He talks about loss and family and friends and about the crew and then stops and turns to Gavin and talks about him. He talks about how Gavin reminds him so much of a story he once heard, about a man named Midas who everything he touched turned to gold.

“Is it because of the gold part.” Gavin says, rolling his eyes. Ryan shakes his head then stops himself, shrugging. “A little, it’s definitely ironic.” He stops, looks at Gavin again, and continues.

“You wished for something to make you whole and it only made you miserable, every time something got close it turned to gold. And now you’re worried you’re cursed like Midas is and it would kill you to turn us to gold.” Gavin is stunned, and doesn’t speak.

“Midas killed his wife, his daughter, all by accident.” Ryan says, looking off to the distance. “And you think I’m Midas?” Gavin asks, Ryan grabbing his hand.

“No, I think you believe you’re Midas.”

He does not say It when Geoff and him both jump at the same time, turning into each other as the movie on screen continues, the others either fully enraptured by the movie or laughing at them. Geoff yells at the screen and Gavin hides his eyes as the movie turns out to be scarier than previously thought and both Gavin and Geoff are terrified of every bit of it.

“Fuck a dick!” Geoff yells as another jumpscare throws them back into each other’s arms. Gavin grumbles under his breath about the movie and Geoff agrees and they both peak out and immediately regret it. Gavin hides his face into Geoff shoulder subconsciously as he hears a loud noise from the screen and Geoff tries his best to comfort Gavin even though he is scared himself. Together they make a ball of fear and limbs interlock with limbs and only they could say where one ended and they other began.

He does not say It even when Michael does and it is not because it wouldn’t be true. Michael is able to walk around now, a soreness to his chest and a weakness to his breath but he will be okay, into the night they whisper and into the day one yells and the other laughs and between them is a palpable energy that only Michael will acknowledge.

“I love you.” Michael says casually on the couch, either no one over hearing or no one wants to interrupt as only Gavin reacts. Gavin wants to say something, but never does, and instead climbs closer to Michael and tries his best to show him.

“I love you” flows easy from Michael’s lips and Jeremy’s and Jacks and Ryan’s and Geoff’s. They say it to each other constantly but Gavin can remember each time they say it to him.

“I love you.” Jack says while making breakfast, Gavin originally looking down looks up and around for the rest of the crew but finds it empty save for Jack and himself. Jack is looking at him and smiles when Gavin freezes, offering him a plate. “Do you want to go into town today?”

“I love you.” Ryan says as they look at the stars, Gavin given the task of creating names for each one. This time Gavin does not look around, he knows they are alone, and instead of saying anything he looks at Ryan, who looks back with relaxed eyes and says, “It’s okay.” looking back at the stars as he does, slipping his hand into Gavins.

“I love you.” Jeremy says, the two tangled together on the couch, refusing to head to their separate beds, Jeremy still not healed all the way. It is totally quiet, and Gavin can almost feel himself say it back, but he doesn’t. Jeremy sighs softly, and Gavin opens his mouth, not wanting him to think he didn’t hear him, “Jer...”it is all he can say. Jeremy pulls him closer, kissing him softly.

“I love you.” Geoff says the night before they go back to the penthouse, the rest of the room cloaked in darkness as Ryan snores and Jack snores. “I mean it, Gav, I do.” Geoff says, speaking into the void. Gavin bites his lip and closes his eyes tighter, gritting his teeth painfully.

That morning Gavin does not wake up first, everyone milling around and packing. Gavin gathers his things and when the get into the van the air is light. Gavin smiles widely at Michael who looks much better, having healed nicely the past weeks and they leave.

The hour it takes to get to the penthouse leaves everyone anxious to get back home, Gavin swears Jack is speeding a good twenty over the entire time. When they arrive it is an audible relief and Gavin has never been happier to be home.

The lads are bouncing to get inside and Gavin can’t miss the grins on everyone’s faces and the all get back inside and the mood does not change until they enter the living room.

It is destroyed, shattering into a million pieces, never to be found again. The room is covered in the word traitor, pictures of Gavins face but much younger plastered to the walls and newspaper articles are blown up wide on the walls next to them. Gavins face pales and he can not bring himself to look at the walls because he knows what they say.

He knows what the articles say. He knows why the word traitor is everywhere.

He makes a decision and before anyone can stop him he is running, running to the shed and inputting the code, grabbing the nearest bike and driving off much like he did before and the others are left in the dust of the Golden Boy.

Traitor traitor traitor.

Man kills seven.

Blood bath in London.

One Man One Massacre.

Kills Own Gang.

Seven Found Dead In Own Home.

Local Gang Falls At Hands Of One.

Do you really know Gavin Free as well as you think?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this chapter is a little wonky my writing style changes infrequently. For behind the scenes or drabbles follow my tumblr @nuggetsofross


	26. Midas

It takes a long time to clean the walls, longer still to figure out that Gavin’s not coming back on his own. Ryan goes, Jack goes, Jeremy goes. It leaves Michael and Geoff to clean the mess.

It is silent, reflective of the mood, as they tear down paper and scrub the walls. Geoff’s face is heavily guarded, his eyes moving over the papers as he reads them. “This is going to take fucking forever.” Michael says, wiping his forehead as he finished cleaning off one of the walls. “Yeah.” Geoff says softly, his lips twitching.

Michael feels a pit of fury rise from his stomach and he attempts to calm it down, ripping the papers off loudly. “Why’d he run away, what is he hiding from?” Michael asks, his hands clutching the papers, he grabs more down and he can feel himself writhing.

“Why does he always do this! What is he thinking!” Michael says loudly, Geoff stays at his spot, staring at the papers on the wall, unshaken. “I thought everything would be fine after the cabin, I thought we were fine.” Michael rants, slowly working himself up more.

A cloud of anger floats over Michael, it’s smoke curling into him and choking him. “What did he think we we’re going to do! Kick him out? That fucking asshole can’t handle anything without running away!” Michael’s face is red, the task at hand forgotten as he spews out every venomous thing sticking inside his throat.

“He’s so god damn good at running away it’s amazing he didn’t run away sooner, it would have saved us some time.” Michael spits, his heart pounding, his ears ringing. He grabs down more papers and stops when Geoff speaks up, “Have you read them.” Michael glances at him, the man still staring at the paper covered wall.

“No, I don’t care what they-“ “Read them.” Michael huffs, moving to a paper on the wall, a newspaper article. Michael’s eyes skim over it, hardening as he gets further into it. Every single one contains the graphic, brutal details of the crews death, not to mention the mountain of evidence pinning it all on Gavin. “What?” He whispers, dropping the papers in his hands and reading more.

“He’s a traitor.” Geoff says quietly, glancing at the faint words painted onto the walls. They make sense now. “You don’t really think that.” Michael says, then glances at Geoff, who’s face looks resigned. “You’re being serious?”

Geoff sighs and stands up, ripping a paper off the wall, “It’s all right here Michael, there’s no other way to look at it.” He says, his tone low. Michael walks to Geoff, anger leaving his body, “Geoff-“ The door swings open, Jack and Jeremy enter together, faces downcast. They walk in and Michael turns to them.

“No sign of him.” Jeremy says, “Did you look-“ Michael attempts to help, Geoff steps forward. “Stop, if he doesn’t want to be found then maybe we’re better off.” Geoff says, his face stoic, his voice not wavering.

“What the hell Geoff?!” Jack says after a brief moment of shock, Geoff’s shoulders squaring. “He obviously doesn’t want to be found Jack.” He says, “So we just stop looking, what’s wrong with you!” Jack says, his tone sharp. Michael’s eyes widen, rarely do the two fight, but when they do, it gets ugly.

“You didn’t read the articles Jack, he betrayed his crew, he killed them all, what if he was going to do that to us!” Geoff says, Jack taken back for a moment, then he steps forward. “That was years ago Geoff.” Jack says, his tone getting lower and lower.

“Well I don’t want to risk everyone here for someone who could turn around and kill us all.” Geoff says, his eyes digging into Jack’s. “Geoff! You’re talking about Gavin, you know he wouldn’t-“ Geoff cuts him off, “No I don’t.” The air turns cold.

“That’s the problem, I don’t know him, none of us do.” Geoff says, his voice breaking slightly before he steels himself. No one counters that, they can’t, and so Geoff takes a step back, turning to the wall.

“So we’re just leaving him.” Jeremy says, his voice tight. Michael looks at him and freezes at the amount of pain in his expression, the color fading out of his face as reality sets in. “Yes, call Ryan back.” Geoff says, not turning around, he walks past the wall and into his room.

No one moves. “I’ll go talk to him.” Jack whispers, walking after Geoff. Jeremy’s fist clenches, turning his gaze to the walls. “That’s not him.” Jeremy says, his voice caught in his throat. Michael clears his, grabbing the phone out of his back pocket numbly, Jeremy walking to the wall and furiously ripping down paper. Michael calls Ryan, his body oddly empty.

Ryan picks up after the third ring, “Michael, any news?” Ryan asks, sounding slightly rushed. “No.” Michael says distantly, a pressure building up in his skull. “Geoff said to stop searching, we’re done looking.” He says with a hint of malice. “What, why?!” Ryan says, bewildered.

“Geoff has decided we’re better of without him.”

“...Are you being serious.”

“Yeah, Geoff’s convinced he’s a traitor and...the articles kind of prove it.”

“Michael.”

“Ryan.”

“Tell Geoff to fuck off.”

Ryan hangs up the phone and Michael looks down at it, his knuckles stark white as he grips his phone. “What’d he say?” Jeremy asks, the walls now clear of paper, all of it ripped and crumpled up on the floor. Michael doesn’t answer him, instead walking to Geoff’s door, angry whispers coming from inside.

“Ryan says fuck off!”

~

It takes a while for Ryan to admit defeat, coming back the next day early in the morning with a dark look on his face, he and Geoff exchanging stony looks throughout the day.

But, as the saying goes, the show must go on.

It’s been almost a month since they wiped out Flynt, and it will soon be the same for Coal. Geoff goes over files for hours, to days, to nights, to weeks. The crew is quieter as everyone is hellbent on getting this one right.

No one will open Gavin’s door. No one will sit at Gavin’s seat at the table. No one even mentions him. It’s as if he’s dead, and to most of them, he might as well be.

Ryan leaves at night, sometimes for the entire night. The others know he’s looking for Gavin, but no one brings it up, silently wishing he succeeds. But he never does.

So the crew creates a plan to go after Coal and they forget about Gavin for a while, planning is meticulous, and they can’t mess up like last time. Especially since they’re missing one. Especially since this means so much. Especially since they’re sure to die if it doesn’t go perfectly.

Everyone is distant, even Jack and Geoff rarely talk outside of planning, icy remarks exchanged instead. Jeremy is forlorn and quiet, staying in his room most of the day. Ryan leaves often, and comes back covered with mud and blood. Michael get’s angry and lashes out at everyone, creating a few holes in the wall as the date for the plan gets nearer. Jack is quiet and cold, smiles rarely thrown around.

And Geoff, he just wishes everything will go back to normal soon. He needs it.

~

Days of nothing. Then comes the day of everything. Everything they have been working towards for so long, comes together today, and no one is excited.

“Is everyone ready?” Geoff asks in a robotic voice that he has gotten well at the past few days. Everyone nods, clutching their guns tightly as the sit in the unmoving van. They’re off and it is completely quiet in the van, no talking, no music, nothing. It seems right for the occasion.

It takes some time to get to their destination, but when they do, Geoff finally interrupts the quiet. “You all now the plan, let’s do this.” The door is opened and they all go their separate ways.

Jack stays in the van, armed just in case, Jeremy near him with a sniper to the window. Ryan and Michael go in first, no one speaking. Geoff follows after, gun up, eyes scanning white hallway after white hallway.

It starts immediately. They soon realize that they never had a chance.

“We have a problem.” Guns echo through comms and Jeremy is ducking, a bullet flying over his head, Jack is ordered out of the van, and Geoff is aimed at, a smirk on the mans face. Logically Coal should never have known about their plans so detailed like. Logically they shouldn’t have been caught so quickly. Logically something is wrong.

Jack is escorted and Jeremy is jerked out of his hiding place, fighting against a hand full of people. Everything echos over the comms and it becomes clear that their plan has failed.

Dragged to an empty room, one by one, they are propped up on their knees. Jeremy and Michael are cursing and growling and spitting everything they have at the people aiming guns at them, gaining no reaction. Geoff is silent, eyes calculated and hard. Jack looks down at the ground, expression impossible to make out. And Ryan is staring straight ahead, face utterly blank as he does so.

It all comes crashing down.

When the dust settles, and the doors open, they are greeted by Coal with a wide biting grin. Michael and Jeremy are louder now, but the stop when another figure appears in the doorway, sporting the same grin as Coal.

Gavin walks in, hands in his pocket, gun by his side, glasses on his face. He is chuckling darkly under his breath and the air is sucked out of the room. “Gavin.” Jeremy says breathlessly, lurching toward him, the man behind him pulling him back, struggling as Jeremy fights against his grip.

“Nice to see you all recognize your friend.” Coal says, walking towards Jeremy as he is continues to fight the grip on him. “Though, he doesn’t go by Gavin, as you’re probably aware of.” Coal continues, Michael lurches at him, teeth barred and Coal backs up slightly, unfazed.

“He’s Midas now, not Gavin, not the Golden Boy, but Midas. It’s strong, powerful, deadly, just like him.” Coal goes on, Gavins grin growing. It all make sense now.

“You traitor!” Geoff yells, his face falling. “Took you long enough to realize Geoffery.” Gavin says, his voice smooth and calm. It makes Michael want to puke. “Why?” Jack asks, his voice broken. “I got a better job offer, you know how it is, nothing personal.” Gavin says, tilting his head at him and bleeding fake sympathy out of his smile.

“I’ll fucking kill you.” Michael growls, the rest of the crew slightly startled at the sudden exclamation, Gavin freezes for a second, but comes back with a stronger smile, slowly walking over to him and squats, eye level to Michael.

They stare at each other for a moment, Michael breathing hard and Gavin unmoving. “Oh Michael boi...no you won’t.” He says, lightly placing his palm on Michael’s cheek, chuckling darkly when Michael lurches forward, attempting to attack him.

“Motherfucker do that again, I dare you, too much of a fucking coward Gavin, are you too much of a fucking coward!” Michael screams, Gavin flinching slightly as he does, spurring Michael to continue. “You run away like a fucking pussy and you can’t even fight me, you’re a coward Gavin a fucking coward!” He yells louder, Gavin getting back up, his expression blank.

“He’s right.” Coal says, the room falling silent.

Coal looks at Gavin with a raised brow, his grin turning sharper. “Show them you’re not a coward.” Coal says, Gavin stands still, waiting, then he pulls the gun from his side, holding it squarely in his palm. “Show them.” Coal repeats.

The room becomes a frenzy of voices, Geoff is yelling, Michael is yelling, Jeremy is pleading and Jacking is trying to talk soothingly to Gavin, but only one voice gets his attention.

“Don’t do this.” Ryan says, his voice free from trembles, his mask muffling his voice slightly. “Ryan.” Gavin says, his tone emotionless. Gavin motions for the man behind Ryan to make him stand. Ryan stands up and stares at Gavin, “What did you say?” Gavin asks, “You don’t have to do this.” Ryan repeats, his voice growing stronger. Gavin walks over to him, his fingers touching the mask, lingering on the edge for a moment before pulling it off.

“Say it again.” Gavin demands, Ryan’s expression falters, before he repeats himself. “You don’t have to do this. Gavin come back, I searched everywhere for you, we’ll take you back, we can all work past this.” Ryan says sincerely, his voice cracking. Gavin pauses, his hand shaking slightly.

“Ryan.” Gavin stops, and breathes in, raising his gun. “No we won’t.” And he pulls the trigger. Ryan instantly falls to the ground, his hands going to his chest, blood pooling in his hands. Gavin stands in place, never moving even when Ryan chokes audibly, the rest of the room yelling. “Take them all to the other room, even the dying one.” Coal says, waving them off.

They are dragged out and there is more screaming, broken, crying, hoarse, screaming. “I hate you Gavin, I fucking hate you!” Michael yells, the last thing being heard as the door is shut and they are gone. A red stain is on the floor where Ryan once was.

Gavin hasn’t moved and Coal puts a hand on his shoulder, his smile evil. “Good job Midas, I knew you where the right one for the job.” Coal says. Gavin nods, clearing his throat and straightening his back, putting his gun back. “Thank you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :’D sorry for this for more follow my tumblr @nuggetsofross


	27. FALLING DOWN Down down ...

Gavins chest aches, his ears ring, and he is wearing the fakest smile he has ever constructed. Midas is harder to pull off than Goldie.

Coal leads Gavin away with a firm hand on his shoulder, chatting while he does. "Honestly Midas I could not think of a better team, you and I will take this city, just as it was meant to be." Coal says, leaving a bitter feeling in Gavin's mouth.

"I agree." He says smoothly, walking into a room with Coal, freezing at the sight of another man. "Goldie." The Man says, his voice deep and menacing and achingly familiar. Gavin can't catch his breath for a moment, but when he does he sneers, sending him a deadly glare.

"You." Gavin says lowly, Coal chuckling darkly. "Mm, yes, you've met." He says, Gavin stares at The Man and everything terrible flies through his vision, his throat suddenly tight. "You two seem to have gotten off on the wrong foot." Coal continues, circling around Gavin and The Man.

"Finally picked the right decision?" The Man asks sarcastically, Gavin refusing to talk to him, glancing at Coal. What is he doing.

"Yes he did. Now I can't possibly have two right hand men." Coal says, his tone soft and waiting, The Man tenses, throwing a look at Coal. It seems even he is confused as to what is happening. "I'm your right hand man." The Man says, his tone wavering.

Coal shrugs, walking back to the door and grabbing the handle with a sneer. "Prove it." He says, walking out of the room and closing the door behind him.

Prove it? What does he mean-The Man tackles him, both of them landing on the ground hard, Gavin slightly out of breath as The Man regains his composure and raises his fist.

Gavin rolls out from under him, getting up and taking a stance, his form wobbly. Gavin's not one for fighting. The Man runs at him and Gavin can not duck out of the way, his back hitting the wall hard, The Man landing a bruising punch to the side of Gavins face, leaving him dazed.

Gavin pulls back and kicks The Man squarely in the side, knocking him back a few steps before he comes back with renewed energy. "Just give up!" The Man yells, blood streaming down his nose as Gavin lands a solid punch.

"Make me." Gavin huffs, his body beginning to ache. The Man lets out a strangled cry, quickly devolving from a terrifying torturer to a savage animal. Gavin is thrown back to the ground, his side kicked hard before he can roll, shielding himself. Out of the corner of his eye something gives off a glint of light.

Before he can act Gavin's gun is ripped from his side, forgotten by Gavin all together. "It's over Goldie, finally, I get to finish what I started." The Man snarls, his smile too wide. The Man raises the gun and Gavin shields his face.

The Man laughs maniacally and loudly as he pulls the trigger, the sound deafening the both of them. The Man continues laughing but stops abruptly, seeing Gavin with his hand still up. "What?" He mumbles, his eyes squinting at Gavin. Gavin takes his chance and lunges for the glinting piece of metal, standing with it menacingly in his hands.

"Blanks, they're blanks." The Man says, chuckling humorlessly. "Do it Goldie." The Man says, taking in Gavin's stance and tossing the gun to the side. Gavin wavers, watching The Man with a cold gaze. "You can kill me, but you can't kill what I've done, what you've done." He says softly, smirking while watery laughs bubble up.

"Shut up." Gavin says, his hands shaking. The Man raises an eyebrow, "What you want me to stop talking? Isn't that the opposite of what you want?"

The Man takes a step forward, "You can't stand the quiet now can you? Or the dark, you just sit there and you shake and panic and do everything you can to forget."

The Man takes another step, they are mere feet apart. "We'll you can't forget, you'll never forget, it's what I do Goldie, it's what I'm good at."

He chuckles, lowering his voice. "Breaking things."

The Man places a hand on Gavin's shoulder and Gavin rears back, snarling, "No!"  He sinks the sharp piece of metal deep into The Mans throat. A deep gurgling sound comes from The Man and his hands fly to his neck, grasping at the piece of metal frantically. The Man stumbles back, crashing into a nearby desk before falling over.

The gurgling stops.

Gavin breathes heavily, leaning on the wall next to him, clenching his fists in an attempt to stop them from shaking. Brushing a hand by his hair he whispers, "Ryan."

_Leaving the house along with Jack and Jeremy, he walks to the garage. "Jeremy and I can search the city you should search the outskirts." Jack lists off flatly, holding his keys tightly in his grip and getting into his car, Jeremy following after. Ryan nods curtly and walks quickly towards his bike, thankful Gavin took a less expensive one this time._

_Jack and Jeremy peel off to the right and Ryan goes left, his thoughts going by as fast as the wind as he drives to a place he doesn't know. Traitor? Who would write that in the penthouse? More importantly why. Calling up Trevor and Matt did nothing, they swore up and down that they watched the house the entire time. They left an hour before we got home._

_That must mean someone was waiting._

_Ryan drives slowly near the city, helmet on he looks through it at the busy city begging for just a glance at him. He goes without one, hope bleeds out faster than the sun goes down. Ryan parks at a gas station for a quick break when his phone goes off, grabbing it he sees the caller._

_"Michael any news?" He says, walking out of earshot of the people around him. "No." Michael says, Ryan feeling something off about it. He goes to speak but Michael does first, "Geoff said to stop searching, we're done looking." He says, his voice grim and angry. Obviously this wasn't a group decision._

_"What, why?!" Ryan asks, staring hard at the ground as he waits for an answer.  "Geoff has decided we're better of without him." Michael says, Ryan practically hearing the sneer in his voice. He pauses, his thoughts unable to catch up. "Are you being serious."_

_"Yeah, Geoff's convinced he's a traitor and...the articles kind of prove it." Michael says, anger still leaking in his tone but he falters at articles. The articles, god the damn articles, of course Geoff is freaking out. He was already suspicious before but now this? Fuck, Geoff won't risk the crew for this. It's up to him._

_"Michael."_

_"Ryan."_

_"Tell Geoff to fuck off."_

_He hangs up and he knows he's going to regret it later but right now he can't. Ryan grabs his helmet and puts it on, jumping back onto his bike he rides._

_Ryan goes to the only place he can think of._

  
Michael looses awareness around him as he screams, his throat aching and raw before he is able to stop. But his anger never stops. Geoff and he are in a totally different room than the others, being split up nearly immediately.

Geoff is pacing back and forth while Michael continues to bang on the door. He hates and hates and hates and he is not afraid to go mute from screaming it.

His throat feels like it's bleeding and Geoff wants to cover his ears because Michael sounds like a wounded animal.

Geoff attempts to calm him down, but only so much can be done. Betrayal is an impossible pill to swallow, so instead Michael snarls and rips it apart, spitting it out in the form of screams and punches.

His fists are bleeding.

His eyes are damp.

He misses Gavin but the thought of him makes his screams louder. The thought of Ryan make his punches more desperate.

_Ryan arrives at the one place he thinks he can find out where Gavin is. Parking his bike outside of the club he feels dangerously exposed, not thinking to bring his mask he is simply Ryan out here. Pushing away his anxiety he walks to the clubs entry way, thankful it's not busy just yet._

_"Name?" The bored bouncer says, looking him up and down without a change in expression but Ryan recognizes him immediately. "Kevin, we have something to talk about." Ryan says, slyly gesturing to the gun at his side as he does so._

_Kevin raises an eyebrow, obviously finding it odd that Ryan knows his name and finding it even odder that he's attempting to threaten him in broad daylight. Finally, he gives._

_"What about?" He asks calmly, eyes steady on Ryan. "Dollface, how much do you know about her?" Ryan asks, Kevin hums, smirking to himself. "Name rings a bell, but that's about it." He says, very obviously lying. Ryan grabs his gun and positions it as to obscure it from everyone but Ryan and unfortunately Kevin._

_"Are you sure about that." Ryan says, his voice taking a deep turn. Kevins eyes flicker and then widen, a flash of recognition in them. "What do you need?" He asks, sounding much more helpful now. "Address, now." Ryan asks, Kevin stuttering for a bit before Ryan pushes the gun closer to Kevin. "Okay okay, fine, but you didn't get it from me."_

_At that Ryan smirks._

_Back on his motorcycle Ryan speeds the entire way to the address Kevin gave him, nearly wrecking on the way there. When he parks he jumps off his bike, the streets now dark as it is officially night._

_Ryan hopes he has the right address as he knocks on the door, weirdly mundane for him. The door opens only a tad, a voice Ryan doesn't know talks to him. "What do you want?" It's a woman's voice and briefly Ryan thinks Kevin really did lie to him._

_"I'm looking for Meg Turney." He says, looking through the crack in the door but not seeing anything. The door whips open and Ryan is yanked inside, the door slamming behind him and a gun presses to his back. Ryan slowly raises his hands and looks behind him._

_"How do you know Meg?" The woman demands, her blonde hair reaching past her shoulders and her eyes staring coldly at Ryan. "She's-" Another voice speaks, "Linds what is going on!" Meg walks into the room, her body freezing once she sees the situation._

_"Ah, no, Lindsay I know him I swear!" Meg says quickly walking between the two of them. Lindsay glares at Ryan from over Meg's shoulder but she does put her gun down. "Meg sorry for bothering you but-" Ryan attempts but Meg speaks again, "This is Ryan Lindsay, Lindsay Ryan and I'm pretty sure I know why you're here Rye." She says, an odd, awkward smile on her face._

_"I'm looking for Gavin." Ryan flat out says, Meg nodding and pursing her lips. "Yeah, about that." Meg says, rubbing the back of her neck. "He's out." Lindsay says, Meg glancing at her and mouthing words Ryan can't make out._

_"He's out..of the country yeah, he ran for it." Lindsay amends, Meg huffing quietly. "Not that I don't believe you but all I want to do is talk to him, thats it." Ryan says, looking at Meg hopefully. Again, Meg sighs, looking back at the door and contemplating. "He is actually out right now but, I guess, when he comes back I'll let him make the decision." Meg says, Ryan breaking out in a smile. "Thank you Meg." He says sincerely._

_"Don't mention it, seriously, if Gavin gets pissy I'll tell him you refused to leave." Meg says, walking over the the couch and sitting down, Lindsay watches Ryan but sits next to Meg. Ryan opts for the chair, not wanting to get on Lindsays bad side more than he has._

_"How'd you find me?" Meg asks to break the ice. "The bouncer at Peri told me." Ryan days, Lindsay muttering, "I knew we shouldn't have trusted him." Ryan glances at Lindsay, trying to understand just who she is._

_"Um, I guess I should introduce you guys a little better." Meg mumbles, looking between them. "Lindsay this is Ryan, one of Gav's boyfriends, Ryan this is Lindsey my uh..." She trails off, her cheeks turning red. "Girlfriend, I'm Meg's girlfriend." Lindsay says confidently, Meg smiling softly._

_"Did Gavin say we we're dating?" Ryan asks, genuinely curious. "Well, no, but it's not like you guys are just friends." Meg says, shrugging her shoulders. At that Ryan's cheeks heat up, he supposes Meg is right._

_"Where's everyone else?" Meg asks, Ryans body tensing. "It's just me." He says flatly. Meg doesn't know what to say to that, and so the room goes awkwardly quiet. Thankfully, the door opens. Thankfully it's Gavin. Not thankfully he almost runs back out the door when he sees Ryan._

_"Gavin wait!" Ryan says, standing up and taking a step towards him. "How did you-Meg why is he here?" Gavin asks, looking behind Ryan. "He wouldn't leave!" Meg says, "Meg let him stay." Lindsay says, Meg mumbling under her breath at her._

_"I just want to talk." Ryan says, Gavin looking back at him with shielded eyes, finally he nods. "Okay." Meg gets up and brings Lindsay with her, "We'll just head out for a bit, good luck!" She says rushed, Lindsay muttering about having to leave her own house._

_Once they shut the front door Gavin clears his throat, gesturing to the couch. They both sit down and Gavin speaks, "I'm guessing everyone's freaking out." He says quietly, Ryan nodding faintly. "I'm sorry Ryan but this is the only way." Gavin whispers, Ryan frowning at him. "The only way for what, all you need to do is explain-" Gavin shakes his head._

_"You don't understand Ryan."_

_"Then make me."_

_Gavin pauses, Ryan slipping his hand into his and squeezing it lightly. "Explain the articles, the writing on the walls." Ryan says, Gavin's face loosing color slightly. Gavin struggles then looks at Ryan, "This isn't a happy story, there's a reason I don't talk about it." Gavin says, his jaw clenching._

_"And I'll be here regardless."_

_Gavin's eyes soften and he smiles slightly, loosing it as he opens his mouth, starting the story he has wanted to keep secret for three years._

Jeremy is empty and hallow and is being dragged to a room. Putting up a fight is one of the last things on his mind. Thrown into a room he lands on his knees, flinching as he does so, Jack and Ryan landing near him. Jeremy stumbles onto his feet and turns in time for the door to close on his face, hearing a sharp click.

Jeremy attempts to open the door, finding it locked as expected. He glances back and sees Jack hovering over Ryan, face ashen and brows furrowed. It makes the pit in Jeremy's stomach worse, "Ryan." Jeremy whispers, snapping out of his empty daze.

Staggering to Ryan he pauses when Ryan sits up. "How are you..."Jack asks. Ryan smiles dully, his hands now covered in dried blood, go to his shirt, revealing broken plastic covered in what Jeremy thought was dried blood.

_Ryan sits next to Gavin, listening quietly. When Gavin is done there is no breaking such a heavy silence. Instead Ryan says what needs to be said, "I'm sorry." Gavin takes it and realizes why Michael hates hearing it._

_"That's not the reason I'm out here, all of that's in the bloody past now." Gavin says, turning to Ryan. "Then why did you leave the penthouse, if you would just explain what happened." Ryan says, Gavin shaking his head._

_"I have a plan."_

_"What kind of plan."_

_"One that will end of this once and for all."_

_Ryan knows that tone._

_"I'm assuming I won't be able to talk you out of it."_

_"No."_

_A pause._

_"Then how can I help."_

_Gavin stares at him, thinking._

_"I'm going to have to shoot you."_

“He didn’t shoot you?” Jack asks, a wave of relief and confusion washing over him. “No, it’s fake, all of this is fake, we have a plan.” Ryan says, his words rushed as he grasps around in his pocket, pulling something out and placing it in his ear.

“Gavin. I’m with Jeremy and Jack, Michael and Geoff are in a different room.” He says, sitting up. The air shifts in the room as both Jeremy and Jacks face dawn with realization.

“Holy shit this was planned?” Jeremy says, raising to his feet. “All of it, down to Gavin leaving.” Ryan mumbles lowly, trying to keep his voice down in case there are people on the other side of the door. “Why didn’t he just-“ Jack starts to ask but Ryan interrupts him, “Immediately to the left then two doors down.” Ryan says, obviously not talking to Jack.

“Why didn’t he tell you?” Ryan says, standing up and frowning at the dried bloodish substance on him. “Because it had to be believable, Coal is smart, he would know if all of us were aware Gavin was lying.” Ryan says, pausing and glancing at the door.

“Gavin knew he would have to prove himself to Coal, and so we came up with the most believable plan.” Jeremy follows Ryan with his eyes as the man speaks matter-of-factly about the situation, he almost can’t believe whats happening.

Jack and Jeremy take a moment to soak in the new information. “Okay, so what’s the next step?” Jack asks, ready to act. “We wait for Gavin to get where he needs to go, then we create a distraction...”

~

Gavin opens the door to the room where The Man lays dead, the conversation with Ryan ringing in his head. Turning the corner he sees Coal leaning against the wall, waiting boredly while inspecting his nails, without a care in the world.

Turning to see Gavin he smirks widely, a glint in his eyes. “As I suspected, Jacob was no match for you.” Coal says, as if he doesn’t care that his former second in command is rotting in a spare room.

“Who?” Gavin asks in a daze, the name not sounding familiar. “The man you killed was named Jacob, but that hardly matters now, whatever you remembered him by is fine.” Coal says, waving off the conversation and starting ahead.

“It’s not like you’ll be meeting him again.” Coal adds, Gavin’s head pounding as he follows him. He does not want The Man to have a name, so he promptly forgets it as he turns the corner.

Coal continues talking but Gavin ignores him, thinking about his next plan of action. “Midas.” Coal says very pointedly, staring hard at Gavin, stopping suddenly. Gavin stops as well and stares back, “Yes Coal.” He says smoothly, the inside of his face feels plastic.

“What was your reason for picking the Vagabond.” Coal asks, eyes narrowed. Gavins eyes widen, “A gut feeling.” He answers, schooling his features, Coal searches his face. He seems to find what he wants and continues walking.

“You loved him, all of them, didn’t you?” Coal asks, back turned from Gavin as he walks. Gavin nearly trips, clearing his throat. “What makes you think that?” He asks, trying to sound nonchalant.

“I’ve been watching you for a very long time Gavin, longer than perhaps you’re even aware of.” Coal says, glancing back at Gavin, his eyes all knowing and menacing. Gavin stumbles over himself, “I suppose I did at one point.” He says, swallowing hard. Coal nods and they turn a corner.

“Odd thing, betraying the ones you love.” Coal speculates aloud. Gavin taking a moment to think, “People can be replaced, opportunities can not.” Gavin says giving Coal a smirk as he looks back at him.

“Good answer Midas. Good answer.” Coal says, and he opens a door, gesturing for Gavin to go ahead of him. It’s covered in expensive art and sculptures, Gavin calculating the room at near billions.

“Do you know why I want the keys? I obviously don’t need them, I’m successful, rich, soon to be the largest gang in Achievement City but why the keys.” Coal says, walking to a far desk and sitting down at it, Gavin hanging back and looking around the room.

Gavin study’s the room and thinks, pausing before he speaks. “When your father died he gave the keys to both you and your brother, and one for you to share.” Gavin speculates, looking at Coal as his eyes stay steady. Gavin continues, “But you think you should have gotten all of it, everything he had should have been passed to you.” He says, Coal clasping his hands in front of him, sneering.

“My brother deserved nothing from our father, he was hot headed and used his fortune to create a low class fighting ring.” Coal leans forward. “I, on the other hand, made this crew rich and powerful, unbeatable.” Coal stands up, walking towards a portrait on the wall, it has him with an older man sitting on posh looking chairs, both of their stares look dead.

“My father never understood that. He always liked Flynt’s passion, his drive, so he gave him a second chance.” Coal says, shaking his head and staring blankly at the painting.

“But now Flynt’s dead along with our father.” Coal says flatly, Gavin watching him as he turns to face Gavin. “You shot him correct?” He asks. Gavin answers immediately, “Yes.” He says, Coal nodding. “Kind of pathetic, he never really stood a chance.” He says wistfully.

“Do you miss him?” Gavin asks, feeling a weird emotion cloud over him, but it leaves as soon as Coal opens his mouth. “No. Now that he’s gone soon I will have all three keys. I would have done the job myself but, it’s not my style.” Coal says chuckling to himself.

They don’t speak.

Someone knocks on the door and Coal raises his voice to let whoever it is in. A member of Coals gang steps inside, looking incredibly nervous. “We have a disruption on the west wing-“ Coal stands up, face hard. “Stay here.” Coal says to Gavin without room to argue. Coal walks out with the gang member trailing after, mumbling panicked words at him.

Gavin watches them leave and then closes the door. Sprinting to the desk he opens drawers and flips over boxes, moving papers out of the way desperately. He must find the keys now. Gavin knows they are in this room, but where.

He starts taking down paintings, flinching at the amount of damage being done to the priceless art in the room. Finally, after taking off nearly all of the wall art, he finds a safe. Gavin studies the lock, handling it and noticing it needs a seven digit code. Gavin goes back to the desk, flipping through paper after paper, his time running out. His eyes skim over packets of paper, digging heaps out of drawers before his hand touches something solid near the bottom of the last drawer.

He pulls whatever it is out and freezes. It’s a picture frame of a young boy and a woman, the boy looks like a younger version of Coal and the women is someone Gavin has never seen. It must be his mother.

Gavin breaks the glass on the picture frame, flinching as he does so, and pulls out the picture, turning it over in his hands. On the back of a picture is a date, with seven numbers.

Gavin takes a moment to look back at the actual picture, something about it is bittersweet. He goes back to the safe and inputs the numbers and pulling on the safe’s handle. It opens.

Gavin pockets the picture and opens the safe wider, pushing around valuables like diamonds and jewelry aside and grabbing two envelopes near the back. He looks inside and catches a glance of the keys.

Quickly he stashes them away on his person, closes the safe, and heads to the door, opening it he looks out and his heart stops beating. “Michael.” A body is run into his own.

Michael is on top of him, Gavins back to the floor and Michael attempts to swing at him. “Michael stop!” Gavin says frantically, pushing him off of him hard. Michaels face screwed into one of hatred. “Gavin I’m going to fucking kill you.” He growls, lunging back at him.

“Boi, stop, please listen to me!” Gavin scrambles to his feet, placing a statue between the two of them. “Stop fucking hiding you coward.” Michael sneers, his hands clenched tightly into fists. Veins bulging on his neck. Gavin’s eyes widen and he ducks away.

“Michael this is all a misund-“ Michael tackles him to the floor again and Gavin looses his breath, “A misunderstanding? Really Gavin, how is shooting Ryan a misunderstanding.” Michael growls, his voice catching. Michael raises his fist and Gavin raises his hands to protect his face, “I’m being serious! Ryan’s fine!” Gavin says, squeezing his eyes shut and waiting.

Nothing happens and Gavin opens his eyes, seeing Michael still raising a fist but looking at Gavin with a devastating mixture of hatred and love. “Michael please.” He whispers, taking a chance and sitting up, hunching over in case Michael is serious about the fighting thing.

Michael looks at him but frowns, moving his hand to Gavin’s face, causing Gavin to flinch slightly but all he does is remove Gavin’s sunglasses, flinging them to the side. “Gavin-“ Footsteps echo outside, Gavin scrambling to get onto his feet, Michael letting him.

“Michael, you have to hide.” Gavin whispers fiercely, Michael furrowing his brows at him questioningly. Gavin grabs Michael’s arm and drags him under Coals desk, both of them kneeling underneath it. “Michael, take these.” Gavin says, pushing the envelopes into Michaels hands, he opens his mouth to speak but Gavin continues.

“I need you to hide under here and not leave until I’m gone. No matter what.” Gavin says, the footsteps getting closer. “Gavin what are you going to-“ “Trust me Michael.” Gavin says, looking hard into Michael’s eyes. “Please.” He adds.

Michael doesn’t reply but he brings Gavin closer, kissing him hard and desperate. “I trust you.” Michael whispers. Gavin doesn’t want to pull himself away but he has to and he stands up right as the door opens. Coal walks inside then pauses, taking in the mess.

“Midas. You weren’t looking for the keys now where you?” Coal says condescendingly, Gavin clearing his throat and answering, “I was.” Coal tutts, looking behind Gavin to the closed safe. “You even found the safe, but no code I presume?” Coal says, a smirk on his face, proud of himself. “No code.” Gavin says lowly, acting remorseful.

Coal laughs and walks to Gavin, his smile wide. “Why don’t I believe you Midas?” Coal says, grabbing Gavin by the shirt and checking his pockets, Gavin clenching his jaw. Coal frowns, “No envelopes.” He mutters, Gavin nearly letting out a breath but before he can Coal rips out the picture from Gavin’s pocket.

Coal stares hard at it and Gavin breaks from Coals grasp, taking a few steps back. Coals face darkens, “Seems like you are as smart as I thought.” Coal mutters coldly, raising his eyes to Gavin and going for the gun to his side.

Gavin bolts, running through the door as fast as he can. He hears yelling behind him but doesn’t stop, people block off exits and he is forced deeper, moving farther and farther from any conceivable exit.

Gavin bursts through a door and stumbles to a stop, turning wildly around as the wind blows past him, he’s on the roof. He hears the door open again and he scrambles farther away, nearing the edge of the multistory building.

The comm in his ear goes off, “We found Michael, he has the keys where are you?” Ryan asks, Gavin cursing under his breath, looking ahead at Coal as he raises his gun and sneers like he’s about to pounce. “All of you need to get out.” Gavin mutters, a hand to his ear.

“Where are you.” Geoff demands, using his own comm, Ryan bringing extras for the crew. “Just get out.” Gavin mumbles, Coal raising his voice. “Midas I suggest you hand over the keys before I kill you for them.” Coal says, his tone unhinged.

“You’ll kill me anyway.” Gavin says to him, Coal laughs darkly, smiling. “You know me too well, I guess we couldn’t work together after all.” Coal says, cocking his gun.

“We’re out, Lindsay and Meg are clearing out the building.” Ryan reports, “Where are you?” Jeremy asks. Gavin laughs humorlessly, thanking god they’re all out. “I’m on the roof.” Gavin answers, the comms becoming a mixture of questions and exclamations. “We’ll be there in ten minutes.” Lindsay says, breaking through.

Coal walks closer to him, clearly monologuing the entire time he was up here but Gavin being too busy to care. “I don’t have ten minutes.” Gavin whispers, taking a few steps back, nearly slipping off the roof by accident. Gavin looks back and down to the street below, quickly getting dizzy as he does so.

He whips his head back to Coal. “Maybe this is how it was meant to be, you never had a chance to be anyone you wanted to be. So the one time you do, I shoot you on a roof.” Coal says, laughing loudly. “Hey guys.” Gavin says, his hand to his ear. “I love you.” And he takes a step back, falling.

_Dan was and will always be Gavin's best friend, and when he was younger this was even more true. After high school things were rough, things were difficult, things were impossible. So, they did what anyone desperate enough does._

_Gavin was good at petty things like pick pocketing, Dan excelled at roughing people up, and they used that to their full advantage. As petty thieves they lived ok._

_Then they became better than petty thieves, better than some pickpocket on the street. They became a force, a duo, and people wanted them, badly._

_They said yes to the first gang that asked them to join, they were young and naive but hopeful. The crew was nice enough and they got along well and soon enough Gavin and Dan fit right in. Things got easier and better and Gavin was having fun._

_Their gang got bigger and stronger and the leader was a loud, brash man but he was practically family. Soon enough both Dan and Gavin had bounties on their heads worth a sizable amount, making them cocky._

_Gavin didn’t know who Goldie was, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be a cocky son of a bitch when he wants to. Dan and him become bigger than the crew themselves, and it makes people jealous. Very jealous._

_Gavins out when someone breaks into Dan and his shared apartment. Dan, however, is not. And that is a terrible terrible coincidence._

_Gavin walks into the apartment, and he knows something is off. Things are thrown everywhere, furniture is up rooted and there is blood. A lot of blood. Gavin follows it with a pit in his stomach and finds the source, a gasping, bleeding, dying Dan._

_Gavin drops to his knees and lets out a soul wrenching cry and he gathers him in his arms tears in his eyes and Dan smiles up at him, blood leaking from his mouth._

_“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” Gavin repeats it over and over, sorry for not being here, sorry for not saving you, sorry for turning them both into criminals, sorry he ever entered Dans life. Sobbing he repeats all of this and Dan can only raise a hand to Gavins face, and say “I love you.” And he stays quiet after that._

_Gavin feels as though he is being ripped apart and spit upon by god himself. Sobbing and crying until he’s sure he’s cried enough for a river. He pays for a burial and only he attends an unplanned and solo funeral._

_Only he mourns._

_Then mourning turns to anger, anger into revenge. Tracking down who killed Dan is easy, tracking down who paid to kill Dan is slightly harder, but when he does his world breaks apart again._

_“Why?” He asks the leader of his gang, Gavin pointing a gun at his skull, his hands raised in a mock gesture. “He was worth a lot of money dead Gavin, and so are you.” The leader answers, Gavins anger seeping back in. “Let’s see how much you’re worth dead.” He pulls the trigger and people come to investigate and they are all so guilty._

_Guilty rings through Gavins head and he unloads. It’s a massacre and Gavin can’t remember most of it, but he can’t say he regrets it. After that the police get suspicious, and after loosing everything he decides to loose a bit more and hops on the quickest flight to wherever, landing in some scummy city in the U.S._

_Gavin never forgets Dan._

Gavin never forgets Dan. This is even more true as he is falling and time slows, Dan’s face popping into his head as the ground disappears from under him.

He wonders if Dan would be proud of him. He wonders if Dan ever forgave him for not being there. He wonders if Dan meant what he said before he died.

Gavin wonders if it will hurt when he lands. Gavin wonders if he’ll die when he lands. Gavin wonders if dying hurts.

Things stop being just a thought when he lands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woahhhhhhh hopefully Gavin can fly am I right. For behind the scenes and me deciding what fic to do next follow my tumblr @nuggetsofross


	28. It all ends with a laugh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for such a wonderful journey. I hope you liked this story as it has truly been an expirence for me. For all of you who have left me one word to paragraph long comments, to those of you who have left kudos, and to all of you who have read this now and in the future, this last chapter is dedicated to you.

White lights explode into Gavin's vision and his body is light. His head is dizzy and his body is full of lead. He is moving.

Flying?

Floating?

Is he still falling?

No he can't still be falling, he landed, he knows he did. His searing head and back and arms and legs tell him so.

But he's moving.

Gavin attempts to open his eyes and sees only bright lights once again, a shadow of a man in front of the light. An angel? Is he actually dead.

"Gavin...you asshole." The figure whispers. Not an angel. If not an angel then who..."Jumping off a roof, you're an idiot." The figure says, the tone familiar to Gavin. "I'm alive." Gavin slurs, not sure if it's a question or a statement. "Through some fucking miracle." The figure says and Gavin vision clears.

It's Geoff.

It's Geoff.

How did Geoff get here? Did he run back inside? Why is he by himself? Where's Coal?

Gavin's head becomes heavier and Geoff grunts, repositioning Gavin in his arms. "You're gunna be okay." Geoff mumbles, probably more to himself than to Gavin but Gavin appreciates it anyway.

It's the last thing he hears before he blacks out.

~

White white white. It seizes Gavin. White walls white sheets white bandages covering his leg, chest, hands. He is in pain, deep, nearly blinding pain, and he aches to see someone and confirm that all of this white doesn't signify anything final.

The door opens like it's fulfilling a prayer. Meg is standing in the doorway, looking unlike anything Gavin has seen her as. Hair up in a lazy ponytail she stands with bags under her eyes and clothes she used to scoff at hang loosely over her. "Gavin." She breathes, stumbling to his bed and grabbing his hand, at touching gesture but Gavin is nearly writhing in pain.

"Meg." He says, his throat scratchy and raw. Pausing they look at each other, eyes gazing through each other and to the past and to the future and they come back to now, Gavin sucking in a shaking breath and Meg blinking. "I'll get Jack." She says, standing up and rushing out of the room. Gavin turns his head slowly, his neck screaming in protest. The room is unfamiliar but the beeping next to him is sickeningly familiar.

Everything in the room has an unearthly glow around it. Gavin wonders where he is. Footsteps echo through empty halls and make their way to Gavin’s ears, his head lolling back to the door. Gavin cringes into himself as a wave of pain radiates from his leg, causing more, far smaller waves from everywhere to bounce off each other. Gavin is stuck in a domino effect of pain when Jack walks into the room.

Something is said but Gavin can’t hear it over his own head beating loudly in his ears. Gavin clenches his eyes shut, light exploding behind his eyes. Agony is the only word he can use to explain what’s happening.

Things are pushed aside, Gavins arms are held to his side, more noises mixed with more bright lights.

Slowly. Slowly. Things get duller around the edges, Gavin’s head becomes an ache, and the pain is more numb than anything. Gavin opens his eyes again and looks over at Jack, a needle in his hand.

Gavin doesn’t want to think about what the needle and so he ignores it fully. Turning his head more he sees Jeremy next to Jack, his hands still on Gavin’s arm. He’s as white as the walls behind him, as white as a ghost.

Gavin blinks sluggishly, “Where am I?” He asks, his voice sounding foreign even to himself. “An infirmary.” Jack answers, his voice sounding far, as if he was rooms away. “I’m alive?” He asks again, feeling so wholly out of it the concept seems unlikely.

“Yeah, just barely.” Jeremy says, swallowing thickly as he does, his body tense as he looks over Gavin. “You’re pretty beat up Gav.” Jack adds, offering him a small, shaky, smile. Gavin looks at them, trying to absorb everything, but his brain can’t seem to keep up.

“You should sleep.” Jack suggests, Jeremy backing up as Jack disposes of the needle then leans towards Gavin, placing a soft kiss on his forehead, Gavin lays dazed as he does, but gives him a fuzzy smile, giggling softly.

Jack goes to leave and looks behind him, giving a look to Jeremy as he leaves the room, the door closing with an echoing click. Jeremy glances at Gavin, his face falsely stoic. Gavin’s eyelids droop, and he smiles at Jeremy.

Slipping into a drug induced sleep he sees Jeremy reach out for him.

~

When he wakes up again he is far more aware of where he is, but splitting pain still accompanies him. White walls white sheets white bandages on his arms and on his leg is a white cast.

Looking down he sees the crew has already had their fun signing it. Far too many dicks cover it mixed with heartfelt messages and terrible jokes. It makes Gavin choke up but he presses it down in favor of sitting up and attempting to get out of bed.

Glancing at the right side of him he sees crutches, a sign that maybe they knew he would try to go over his limits as soon as he realized he had some. Grabbing them he attempts to stand, his first try is sloppy, his second is good enough to create a step.

Gavin’s in some shorts paired with, once again, not his sweatshirt, and he’s glad he’s not in an actual hospital or this would be humiliating. Seeing that he’s not hooked up to any IV’s cement his thought of leaving, and so he opens the door and unsteadily makes his way into the hall.

He’s never been down these halls, never seen these doors, never seen this place. It puts him on edge but he relaxes as soon as he hears voices float to him from a nearby room. Something familiar, something to cling to.

“Look who’s up and walking.” Ryan comments as soon as Gavin turns the corner into a wide room. Everyone’s head moves to Gavin and he is put under a state of confusion and awkwardness. “Gavin sit down.” “Gavin do you need me to-“ “I’ll help you over here.”

Gavin brushes off their help, chuckling as both Michael and Jeremy rush out of their seats to help Gavin to the couch. “How are you feeling?” Jack asks, looking unconcerned. “A bit beat up, but pretty top regardless.” Gavin says, leaning into Michael’s side, sighing at the familiar feeling.

“So uh, whats all...wrong with me?” Gavin asks anxiously, Jack’s face screws up for a moment then he lets out a breath, sitting up and making eye contact with Gavin.

“You have a broken leg, bruised and cracked ribs, and you had a pretty bad concussion.” He says, his voice much like a doctors, it makes Gavin think if he could have done something better with his life, could have saved innocent people rather than criminals. He pushes that aside.

“That’s not too bad.” Gavin says, shrugging. “Considering you fell from a six story building.” Ryan adds, his mouth twitching. “Six stories, I fell six stories, thats not possible.” Gavin repeats breathlessly.

“You’re right.” Geoff says, looking at Gavin. Six stories, that’s impossible, six stories is death, five stories is death, god maybe even four stories is death. Six? That can’t be right.

“You landed on a fourth story balcony.” Geoff says, finishing his thought. Gavin pauses. A balcony. Yeah, he remembers seeing plenty of them in Coal’s mansion, what luck, what utter luck.

“Holy shit.” Gavin whispers, his hands touching his face lightly. “You’re probably the luckiest person I’ve ever met Gavin.”

~

“So you never found Coal?” Gavin says, laying down on the couch, his head in Ryan’s lap. “No, no sign of him.” Jack answers, making his way back to the room. “What does that mean, for us.” Gavin asks, Geoff shifting in his seat.

“It means we keep a sharp eye out, that dicks lost everything, he’s going to want revenge.” Geoff says, jaw clenching and eyes far away. “But now, we relax.” Jeremy says, leaning into Geoff as he does.

“Then tomorrow,” Michael starts, eyes glinting and narrowing as his smile twists upwards, “we become what we always wanted to be.”

~

“Honestly was not excepting this place to be this...” Ryan starts, opening the door in front of him, it nearly falls off its hinges while blowing up a cloud of dust.

“Shitty.” “Shabby.” “Ugly.” All of the lads supply. “You’re sure it’s here?” Jack asks as they enter, the house is small and old, it looks like no one has been in it in years. “It’s where the keys told us to look, the exact coordinates.” Geoff says, frowning at the decrepit house.

Gavin hobbles on his crutches, bumping into a table and unsettling a photo frame, he picks it up. Squinting at the photo he wipes some of the dust off, eyes softening. “This was Coals and Flynts house, when they where kids.” Gavin says softly, tipping the photo so Geoff can see it from behind him.

“Wow, didn’t think the Corpirate was sentimental.” Jeremy mumbles, coughing as dust settles into his lungs. Gavin moves to the hall, looking at it under a new light. Pushing the door in front of him open he sees what has to be a kids bedroom, toys litter the ground untouched and rusted. Going inside Gavin sees pictures drawn on the walls of stick figures and animals, of story’s only a child could tell. This has to be Flynts room.

Looking closer he sees trophies and baseball bats and gloves and little toy cars, it’s just a little to real for Gavin and he leaves the room, going into the next one.

This one is not much better, inside it is a slightly older looking children’s room. There are no toys on the ground, no crayon drawn pictures on the wall. Instead there are books and pinned up report cards. Gavin goes closer to the bed and sees something under it.

Gavin can’t bend over with a cast, and so he does the next best thing. “Michael!” He shouts, hearing grumbling and footsteps follow soon after. Walking through the door way Michael frowns at Gavin who offers him a wide smile. “Can you get that?” He asks, gesturing under the bed with his crutches.

Michael huffs and bends down, grabbing something from under the bed and looking down at it with furrowed brows. “It’s just a box.” He says, handing it to Gavin. “I want what’s in the box you knob.” Gavin retorts, opening the box.

Inside are random objects, little toys or pictures, birthday cards, nothing amazing. Digging in deeper Gavin grabs something at the bottom, pulling it up he freezes. “What’s up?” Michael asks, looking over his shoulder at the box. “It’s a locket.” Gavin mutters, opening it and seeing two pictures in it, one of a younger version of Coal and another of Flynt.

“Is this one of the brothers locket?” Michael asks, looking at it with a soft expression. “I don’t think so.” Gavin says, clearing his throat and placing the locket back in the box, putting it on top of the bed.

“Gavin, Michael, we found it!” Geoff yells from a nearby room. Michael goes to the door and holds it wide for Gavin, the two going to the next room.

One bed sits in the middle of the room, and Gavin decides this must be the Corpirates room. It’s cleaner than the others and looks like it’s just any other persons bedroom. But it’s not. It’s not. He has to remind himself it’s not.

A dresser by the right side of the bed holds a case for a gun and a few shells, and the dresser on the left holds a dead rose. Something happened here.

Gavin turns his attention to the right wall, which when pushed in, uncovers a gigantic safe. Geoff looks at Gavin, a wide, infectious smile covers his features. “Are you ready?” Geoff asks, and Gavin nods, taking the key from his pocket out and handing it to Geoff who shakes his head, moving aside and gesturing for Gavin to do it himself.

And he does.

~

“Whats the first thing you’re going to buy.” Gavin asks into the dark of their new bedroom. Geoff sighs, but it’s a loving sigh. “A better bed.” He mumbles, moving closer to the crew memeber next to him, the bed creaking as he does.

“A new car.” Jack says dreamily, Jeremy mumbling next to him, a chuckle passes between the two of them.

“A grenade launcher.” Jeremy says loudly, the crew mumbling skeptically. That would be a terrible, terrible idea.

“I’m with Jeremy on this or, oh fuck, a flamethrower!” Michael says gleefully, Jeremy agreeing. Oh god that would be an even worse idea.

“A new mask.” Ryan says, his arms tightening around Gavin as he says it. Is this a new chapter for him, a new chapter for them all.

“What about you Gavin.”

~

Sighing he lays the flowers down, sitting peacefully beside the slab of stone. He knows the others are around him but when he’s here, it’s always just Gavin and him. Gavin and Dan.

“I know you’re tired of hearing it.” Gavin starts, placing his hand gently on the stone, tracing the words. “But I’m sorry you’re here, sorry that I couldn’t have done more, sorry that you’ll never see how amazing our life could have been.” Gavin says, his voice trembling.

A hand settles on his shoulder, but he doesn’t look back. Steadying his breath, he starts again. “I’m sorry,” Gavin swallows hard. “but, I can’t keep saying sorry.” He whispers, smiling sadly at the stone. He sits silent for a few moments, gathering what he needs.

“I love you Dan, and I hope you’re happy wherever you are.” Tears slide down his face but Gavin doesn’t seem to notice. “Because I am, I’m happy after years of living without you, I’m finally happy again.” Gavin says quietly.

Tears fall faster down his face and his chest tightens, “You would love everyone. I do. I wish you could meet them.” He says so quietly he can barely hear himself. Laughing he wipes at his eyes, “What a mess we are.” He says to the grave of his best friend.

“What a lovely mess.” He whispers, clearing his throat and standing up, his leg still aching slightly but it’s much better now. Geoff slips his hand into Gavin’s and Michael places a light hand on Gavin’s back. “See you soon B.” He says, glancing at the grave before turning around and walking out of the quiet graveyard, hundreds of other graves just like Dan’s, but only his have flowers.

Gavin laughs at one of Jermey’s jokes as they leave, and he can’t help but think this is something very, very wonderful.

To think this all started with a...

Boom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And wow, it’s finally over. Thank all of you so much. P.s. be on the look out for a new story coming in the next few weeks.


End file.
